Star Trek: The Next Expansion
by Oberon
Summary: Now more geographically accurate with updated landmarks. It is the begining of a new ball game and everyone's going to want a piece of the pie. The Feds and Klingons going to make their presence felt.
1. Prologue

Star Trek: The Next Expansion

Prologue

By Oberon

Beta: Entilza

The twin moons of Romulus hung in the night, barely visible in the early morning light. It was a scene many poets had written about, but nothing could surpass the beauty of seeing the Valley of Chula in person.

A young Romulan girl strolled across the cliff that overlooked the valley. Before her, an unfathomable abyss extended for miles. A forest of spires rose from the abyss, their roots covered by a thick blanket of fog. The little Romulan girl shivered, her expensive robes felt cold and damp against her skin.

"Tal'aura, the transport is leaving," a matronly woman called out.

"Just one minute mother." The little girl took one last look at the twin marvels of the Romulan night sky. Savoring every last moment, she climbed the closest pile of rock to get a better look, even though it was only a few feet higher.

A shadow crossed one of the moons, dominating the sight like an ominous omen. The young Tal'aura watched curiously as it drew closer. For a second she thought it could have been a species of bird found on the western continent. "Definitely not a bird," Tal'aura whispered. The shape became more distinct as it got closer. At once her mind screamed as she recognized what it was.

"_I have been betrayed!"_ The little girl jumped from the rock she stood on as she tried to flee from the approaching shadow.

"Tal'aura, help me."

The young Tal'aura turned to the voice of her mother. To her horror the woman began to turn a pale shade of grey. The little girl rushed to her mother's side but before she could comprehend what was wrong the woman violently shoved her away.

"This is all you fault!" the woman screamed just as her skin and flesh became like burnt ash. The woman was silent and a moment later collapsed in on her self.

"No!" in the deepest reassesses of Tal'aura's terrified mind she understood and recognized what was happening. As her mother's remains was scattered to the winds Tal'aura could feel the burning sensation of the process repeating in her own body. She screamed.

"Praetor Tal'aura," her assistant's voice woke Tal'aura from her nightmare. "Praetor Tal'aura, Admiral Sela for the Tal'shiar is on a secure channel."

Tal'aura straightened up. "Jolan Tru, Admiral."

"Jolan Tru, Praetor. Did I catch you at a bad time?"

"Not at all, Admiral, what can I do for you?" Tal'aura hid her displeasure under a cold calculating Romulan mask.

"I bring news of our expeditionary fleet. Two days ago they encountered a civilization 3,000 light years outside our frontier. They did not possess any technology, however, we did find something very interesting in the far end of their system." An image of a large construct appeared on the corner of Tal'aura's screen. Four cylinders hung suspended in space in a diamond configurations. It spoke of age; the signs of it's millennia in space unmistakable as dents and holes from meteor impact riddled the surface.

Tal'aura could not hide her excitement, not completely. "Were you able to activate the device? Is it gateway like the legends said?"

"The device has been damaged; the expedition is working to repair it. However, according to the locals they used it for traveling outside their system at one point in time." This was not entirely unexpected.

"Their claim differs significantly from the other accounts we had received. Very well, keep me informed of their progress."

"Good day Praetor," Sela gave a curt reply.

"Admiral, I don't have to remind you how important this operation is for reclaiming the Empire's glory." Tal'aura stated as a matter of fact.

"Of course, Praetor. Sela out."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o 

The Romulans had named the device the Hyperspace gate. A device that is capable of opening a hole into an entirely new realm of possibilities. As Lieutenant Rhiana Gaius kept an eye on the device, a pulse of energy passed along the cylinders, the power readings of the scale. The energy pulses jumped back along the gate struts, converging at the rear into a glowing orange vortex. A massive disturbance rippled in the space between the cylinders. The distortion swirled like a maelstrom of orange energy, on the other side was what Lieutenant Rhiana had named hyperspace, a place completely undreamed of by subspace physicists anywhere in the Alpha and Beta quadrants – a nonlinear space where distance related to real space is only measured by speed.

"Take us in, Pilot," the subcommander ordered. He was a stern man with a maternal connection to the military. His features were angular and grey hair showing for an early age. The man had rank but was not of noble birth. He looked much older than when Lieutenant Rhiana had first met him.

The Temet, a Valdore class warbird, entered the vast expanse of the twisted hyperspace. As before, sensor range was instantly limited to a 500,000 kilometer radius. An incompatibility between subspace physics in hyperspace had created a severe weakness in the Romulan systems.

"How soon before the new sensors will be ready Lieutenant?" The subcommander had ordered new sensors to be developed based on what they had learned so far.

"I cannot give you an estimate at this time." Rhiana wished she had made more headway but the truth was that effective hyperspace sensors would likely take years of research.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o 

Subcommander Argelian leaned back on the command chair. This time they would be traveling at one quarter impulse along the same route previously established.

The journey to find the device had been arduous and often at times going on nothing but rumor and legends to guide their way. The expedition had left Romulus six months ago with the order to seek out new resources and technology. At this point these were two things the empire needed desperately.

Shinzon's recent attempt to destroy the Federation had shown how far the Empire had fallen behind in terms of technological development. The Enterprise, with its lighter armaments and older design, had defeated the best and latest in Romulan technology, albeit built by the Remans. The diplomatic fallout from that incident had all but derailed any Romulan ambitions in the near future.

Despite the heavy losses thus far, Rhiana could appreciate the Praetor's position. This expedition would be a key step in evening the odds with the Federation - a necessary key step in restoring military pride to the Romulan people. However, she questioned Tal'aura's true motives. Still, one could not be Romulan without at least a few things hidden. Rhiana was no exception to that rule. At times, during the voyage she wondered what some of her friends would say about this most Federation-like endeavor.

The road had been painful for the most part. During the 3rd month in deep space the fleet of 12 had lost 2 ships to a spatial anomaly. Four others were lost 1 month later when they encountered a long dead civilization, only the thing that killed the people on the planet was very much still alive.

The lieutenant could still remember the thing of nightmares as it rose through the rubble of the planet's surface. When it passed it was like space itself screamed in protest. Dark as space and a million times more deadly than the venomous spider it resembles, the thing had easily destroyed two D'deridex warbirds like their shields were not even there. Then it had turned and fled. The commander had ordered the fleet to pursue and in the process got another two ships destroyed before the thing engaged a cloaking device of some kind. It disappeared from sensors and hadn't been seen since.

Of the planet itself, there was nothing worthwhile remaining. Nothing, that is, except several pieces of documents that pointed to the device at the edge of the system. The inhabitants had called it the 'Gateway of the gods.' When the Romulans got to the location all they found was debris that looked like it had been there for a very long time.

For the next month the expedition found several primitive civilizations that had, at one point, developed space travel. What was so surprising and curious was the one thing they all had in common. This people all referred to something called the 'Gate of the gods,' or some variant of those words. Rhiana was beginning to suspect these people had all belonged to some ancient and advance empire at one point. The remnants of this dead empire might bail the Romulan Star Empire out of its current troubles. Some of Rhiana's allies back home would also be very interested in the findings, if only for the archeological significance.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The Temet had been traveling in hyperspace for almost 20 minutes.

"Coming up on the 20 minute mark."

"Full stop." Subcommander Argelian ordered.

"Projectors charged and ready," Lieutenant Rhiana reported. She no longer needed to hide her excitement; the first 3 attempts had already opened her eyes to the possibilities.

A swirling hole in hyperspace opened.

"Pilot, how far did we go?"

"Approximately 42 light years." The helmsman went over his charts, comparing the location to the last run. "Four times further than at 1 tenth impulse."

"Set a course back to the gate."

Just as the ship entered warp the comm. officer notice something odd. "Subcommander, I am unable to establish communications with the Makar and the Tamar."

Argelian rose from his chair. "Check for malfunctions."

"The other ships have all responded."

Argelian looked at the helmsman. "Pilot, what is our ETA?"

"6 hours."

"Increase speed to maximum warp." This felt wrong to him. Something must have happened to the commander's ship. "Inform the others."

Sometime later the Temet was back to the system where the commander's ship was supposed to be, but nothing was there.

"Slow to impulse." Military instincts from previous battles took over; he readied his mind for the worst. It would be advantageous to see without being seen, he reasoned. "Engage the cloaking device."

The bridge lights dimmed in response.

"Sensors, can you locate the Commander's ship?"

"Negative, I am detecting two separate debris fields near the gate."

"On screen." The remains of Romulan battleships were seen floating in space, plasma fires burning the hulls; signs of resent battle.

"The Makar. Scan the debris field."

"I'm detecting a biomass in the area of the debris."

"Show me." The green blood in his veins sped up in anticipation. Truly, this could be a chance for advancement, although somewhat unfortunate for the Commander. The creature, or ship, the Subcommander was unsure which, looked as it belonged to some alien ocean than among the stars. A squid like thing that as it passed through the wreckage its yellow skin reflected the fire that consumed the Commander's ship. The creature turned and began to move to their direction.

"It's coming this way, we had been detected." The comm. Officer was a sublieutenant that had just transferred in before the expedition left Romulus. To the crew he sounded panicked.

With two wrecks of Romulan warbirds floating near the alien, Argelian decided not to take a chance. However, the creature itself presented a temptation Argelian could not ignore. If only there was some way to take the creature alive.

"Drop cloak and raise shields." He didn't' want to destroy it if he could capture it. "Lieutenant, analysis of the creature." Still revenging the dead commander would buy him approval as well.

"Cybernetic life form, internal cavities… corridors, no distinguishable weapons or shields."

"It's some kind of ship?" If so, it would not be the first time. The Breen, who had sided with the Dominion in the last war, were known to use extensive biotechnology in their ships. Of course there was also the creature that appeared in the Federation Romulan neutral zone several years back. Argelian had no desire to repeat the incident that had left several warbirds destroyed.

Lieutenant Rhiana looked over the life signs detector. "I'm not detecting any life forms in the ship's interior." It also seemed that the aliens didn't take any prisoners. With the lack of escape pods it seemed the crews of the Makar and the Tamar had been lost with all hands aboard.

"Hail them," Argelian proceeded with caution. They have no evidence that this creature was responsible for the destruction of the Commander's ship. Of course he wouldn't let that stop him from claiming it if he had the chance.

The crew waited precious seconds as the alien closed in. "No response on all subspace bands, I am not detecting any emissions form the alien that would indicate communication."

The alien came toward the Temet fearlessly almost like it was challenging the Valdore class warbird. It came almost within the Romulans weapons range. The bridge crew waited for the subcommander's next order, a little fear kept in check by stern discipline. By now the alien was almost on them. Still Argelian held firm. The last subcommander to open fire on a bioship without warning had gotten himself blown up.

Military protocol demanded a Romulan crew to follow the commander's order without question with the commander's decision usually being the first and last word. This rigid system of discipline was drilled into every Romulan as far back as childhood. Subordinates didn't speak out of turn.

"Lock disruptors," Argelian finally gave the command.

The tactical officer moved with more efficiency than normal.

"Power spike!" Rhiana called out, just a few seconds from a full panic.

"Evasive maneuvers," immediately he braced himself. "Fire all forward disruptor banks."

The Temet turned away even as it fired off its disruptors. Four beams of green energy splashed against the hull of the living ship. Where they struck dark scorch marks marred the creature, but it did not stop. In response, the forward facing tentacles of the ship pulsed with power. From the tip of each tentacle, beams of destructive energy merged into one point.

A powerful blast slammed into the Romulan shields, causing them to flare a bright green. The shields held despite the massive explosion that occurred as a result. The Temet was tossed about by the force of that the explosion, the shields generators strained to maximum tolerances just by one shot.

On the bridge of the Temet, the crew tried the best they could to hold onto their stations. Warning klaxons blared in the background while consoles exploded, injuring some and killing others. The first officer was dead, a support beam had impaled him. A flash of sparks had splashed Lieutenant Rhiana, causing her to scream as it burnt the back of her neck and hair. The helmsman lay on his controls; he gave a moan to show that he was still alive. The subcommander himself was on the floor after being thrown out of his seat.

The Lieutenant was the first to recover. She looked around, noticed the tactical officer was also dead. The man's body and face was charred by plasma burns and his features almost unrecognizable. Rhiana pushed his body aside, almost casually, she need to gain access to the weapons controls. Charek Hiren would be given a formal burial later, but right now they needed to survive.

"Shields are down to 20 percent. We have lost warp drive and cloak. Impulse drive at 52 percent." She wondered if anyone was still able to hear her report. To her surprise the subcommander managed to drag himself to his feet. 

"Do we have torpedo control?" Argelian climbed back into his command chair, Romulan blood spilled from a nasty head wound.

Rhiana's green blood was pumping with adrenaline and she let her training took over. "Rear torpedo locked on." 

"Fire,"

They waited anxiously as the torpedo traversed the distance between them and the alien ship.

"Premature detonation." The Torpedo had been destroyed before it can reach the target, however the proximity of the explosion was enough to leave a large plasma wound along the alien's bio amour.

"They're coming in for another attack."

"Pilot, take us into the system's asteroid belt. Best speed." The torpedo may not have done much damage but it did hurt the aliens. It made them mad, mad enough to chase the limping Romulans into an obstacle track.

"How soon before reinforcements arrive?" Argelian's hope was for their sister ships to arrive in time to make a difference.

"45 minutes," the comm. reported.

He had no choice now; he had to destroy the alien before his ship was lost too. If not at least he could buy them enough time to reach the asteroid field that lay ahead. The alien came in for the kill.

"Rear torpedoes, full spread." Argelian fully intended to eliminate this threat.

"Ready."

Before the subcommander could give the order to fire the ship rocked as another pulse hit the Temet from behind, though this time at greatly reduced power.

"Rear launchers destroyed."

The only option now was to run. Argelian could not contain his displeasure under the professional demeanor of a warrior. "Pilot, if they hit us again I'll personally make sure you'll never fly anything but freighters no matter how well connected your family is. Is that clear?" He severely regretted ever taking the young Romulan as a pilot for this mission. Noble blood be damned, the man had no talent. A last minute replacement from command, no doubt the young Romulan's parents had called in quite a few favors.

The warbird fled deep into the asteroid belt of the system. Not far behind them the alien ship stalked them like a predator in the ocean. But the living ship was falling behind. The superior maneuverability of Romulan design gave the Temet an edge. But the alien was staying within sensor range. A sign of relief came from the crew of the Valdore class warbird. They were not out of the woods yet but Argelian had brought them some breathing room.

"How long before warp power is restored?" Argelian asked. Warp speed would give them a significant advantage in the next fire exchange. The creature did not seem to be capable of faster than light travel, at least not in the conventional sense.

"At least 2 hours."

There was no way their sister ships would arrive and there was no way to run. He did not intend to die this day and the prospect of having to be bailed out by his sister ships were unacceptable.

"I need a way to kill this thing, and I need it now."

"Subcommander, I believe I have discovered the reason why our torpedo detonated prematurely." Lieutenant Rhiana had an idea which she was just about to explain when Argelian cut in.

"Can you compensate?"

"Yes sir."

"Make haste, we do not have much time."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

At first Lieutenant Rhiana had thought the aliens possessed some form of shielding technology they were not able to detect. However, disruptor fire and the proximity blast of the torpedo were not absorbed. The initial theory was not completely wrong as further analysis had indicated. The aliens did not possess shielding in the conventional sense. The bio armor of the alien ship generated a biometric field which interfered with the guidance system of the torpedo. The jamming was what had caused it to detonate before impact. Baring a redesign of the guidance circuitry, the simplest solution was to add an addition layer of isolation to the tracking computer. Of course the shield frequency would have to be precisely calibrated.

The crew worked feverishly in preparation. The asteroid field was thinning out. It seemed another confrontation was imminent. The alien ship was less than 10 minutes behind them and warp drive was far from ready. Rhiana's fortune, and that of the subcommander's and the crew's future, depending on her being right.

"I have modified 6 torpedoes. However, there will be a slight decrease in range."

"Two minutes until we're cleared of the asteroid field." The pilot reported.

"Shields have been restored to 83 percent integrity." A young sub lieutenant had replaced the dead tactical officer. Kaol Cretak, Lieutenant Rhiana thought was his name. She didn't know much about the young Romulan. The only thing she can recall is that like the pilot, he came from an influential family.

The Temet cleared the last large asteroid. The aliens were right behind them, making the same turn.

"Turn us around." The warbird spun in its axis, ready to face the living ship. "Load forward tubes, regular torpedoes. Target that rock."

"Fire solution ready."

"Fire!"

A full volley of Romulan torpedoes impacted on the large asteroid just as the squid ship passed. The large rock formation shattered under the explosive fore of the torpedoes. Large chunks of rock were sent every direction. The living ship immediately tried to evade as a large portion crossed in its path.

Argelian waited patiently for the alien, knowing they still had targeting lock. "Load modified torpedoes." Any second now, he thought.

"There," a golden burst of energy from the other side of the debris fragmented a large rock that gotten in the alien's way. The bioship started to emerge from the fire.

"Torpedo tube one, fire!"

This time it struck true. The squid ship caught it head on. The two portside tentacles exploded off along with a portion of the front. Without its weapons the alien had only one choice.

"Vortex formation, the alien ship is retreating," Lieutenant Rhiana called out as fast as she could.

"Full ahead, ready disruptors. I'm not letting it get away." Now was his chance to take the creature alive.

But they were too far off. Even as they came within disruptor range the vortex opened and the creature disappeared into hyperspace.

"Follow them," Argelian was not about to give up now. Not when they were so close. Not with honor and prestige seconds away.

"Negative, the projectors are offline."

He sighed, another opportunity lost.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Meanwhile, back on Romulus, bad things keep happening to Tal'aura.

"Praetor, there has been another incident," an aid reported, placing another data pad atop the ever growing pile on Tal'aura's desk. The Praetor sighed. Something had to be done about these attacks, and soon.


	2. Chapter 1: The Brother I Never Knew I Ha

Star Trek: The Next Expansion

By Oberon

Many thanks to Entilza for the fine Beta'ing.

Chapter 1: The brother I never knew I had

The heat coming from the triple suns was enough to boil water on the surface of Polgraph II. This planet was not the healthiest place in the universe but it was a necessary place. Necessary that is, for the nobles to line their pockets with credit and decorate their houses in fine gold. For generations the locals had slaved in the mines, unearthing precious ores to fuel the political and economical machine of the House of Refa.

The Polgraphan people had evolved on this harsh world and were fully adapted to the arid climate. Water to them was precious, not the metals in the ground. Yet thousands died each year in the mines, an offering to their Centauri masters. However, this place was as much a punishment for their overseers as it was for the conquered.

The Centauri that were sent to Polgraph II were nothing more than rejects – people who had fallen far out of favor, or the destitute with nowhere to turn. Governor Carn Marray was one such person. At one time he had had a bright future with a possible seat in the centaurum, once he inherited it from his uncle. But the stars had turned against him, or so his cousin the seer said. He had been the captain of a warship in the service of Emperor. For a man of Carn Marray's age it was considered an achievement of some measure.

One day he was personally given a mission from the Emperor himself: to subdue the rebellion on Polgraph without damage to production. Carn was given 3 capital ships and 5,000 ground troop for the task. It seemed easy enough, Carn had figured. Come in with a show of force, if the Polgraphns still didn't give up then start executing random people. The only problem was, it didn't work. Polgraphns rebelled, and after generations of oppression the rebel fractions didn't care how many of them the Centauri killed.

This was when Carn was persuaded by the previous governor to negotiate with the elders of the Polgraphan people. Carn successfully convinced the elders that further rebellion would only lead to the complete destruction of their people, as the Centauri would never abandon such a resource rich world. In exchange for turning over the rebels the Polgraphns would get improved living and working conditions. It was all a lie of course. Once the rebels had been made an example of, the Polgraphns returned to work like before. It was a great success for man of Carn's age, too great in fact. It made enemies of many who now saw the upstart as a threat. One of these men who were jealous of Carn was a close relative of Lord Refa. Refa managed to convince the Emperor to reassign Carn as the military governor of Polgraph in order to keep the Polgraphns from rebelling in the future. And so Carn had been marooned on this rock for the last 10 years, rotting away in cheap booze and cheaper women.

The temperature in the Governor's house was just a few noticeable degrees lower than what the workers outside endured. By midday not even the temperature controls could keep the house from being a steam room, at least not with the secondhand cooling units they ran off of. Governor Carn Marray lay in a drunken stupor, a half empty bottle of Brivari clenched in one hand, slowly dripping into an evaporating puddle on the table. A knock on the door came. It was ignored. The next time it was more insistent.

"Governor," Carn's aid called out from the other side. "Governor, are you ready?" When there was no response the aid tried to force the doors open. "Carn, I'm coming in."

The Centauri aid was a middle aged man named Vol Tensus. He was the previous governor when Carn Marray had replaced him. He didn't resent Carn of course; the drunkard was as much a victim of circumstance as him. In some way Vol almost pitied him. Vol found the stench of the room overpowering.

"Carn wake up. Carn!" He kicked the governor lightly but the man only murmured in response.

He kicked him again, harder this time, but the drunken Centauri only rolled over with a bottle still in hand.

"Carn, Lord Refa will be here in 6 hours."

Vol didn't know whether Carn had heard him.

"Lord Refa, Carn." He said close to the other man's ear.

The Centauri's eyes snapped open. The first thing he saw was Vol. He winced.

"By the maker, you're an ugly woman." He tried to get up but his head hurt too much. "Where are Mariel and Morella?"

"They left already Carn." He grabbed the governor's hands and pulled him to a standing position. "Come on. Let's get you ready for Lord Refa."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The spaceport was a meshwork of unsecured girders and support beams held in place by the strategic placement of a dozen wielding points, painted white to resist the heat as much as possible. Built into the cliff face of the Oale Mountains on a cost effective basis, the port was perhaps the only place on Polgraph with a higher potential for accidents than the mines. The entire operation was a monument to the improbable – 275 days of accident free performance.

Carn Marray stood proudly in the communication center, dressed in his finest suit and with the same Brivari bottle from his hose still in his hand. His aid beside him tried his best, but was becoming increasingly frustrated, to get Carn ready.

"Jump gate activated," a sweating technician called out.

"Lord Refa is early," Carn commented.

The swirling vortex into hyperspace opened, from it came a ship that greatly resembled a large predatory bird.

"That is not Lord Refa's ship."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Shortly after the death of Commander Parax a breakthrough in hyperspace physics had been made, allowing much of the current subspace technology to be used in hyperspace. The _iTemet/i _had been traveling in hyperspace at warp one, following an unknown stream of tachyons for the last two months. Finally they had reached what appeared to be an intersection for several of these tachyon emissions.

The news of Commander Parax's death was not well received back home. Argelian's failure to capture the alien craft or avenge the Commander became a point of personal shame and public dishonor. "This mission is nothing but an embarrassment," Argelian couldn't help but think. One ship, far from home, sent deep into hyperspace with no communication or backup. It was not a sign of support from the Romulan senate. "I might go so far as to say they want us to disappear." The subcommander suspected there was more to this though. "The entire goal of the expedition may very well be an elaborate setup to keep Tal'aura in power while stripping support from Admiral Donatra." Certainly, many of the ships already lost on this expedition had been commanded by allies of Donatra or her supporters. Of course Argelian knew better than to ever voice these thoughts to the crew. Two months with no stars and no communication, nothing but the twisted abyss of hyperspace would test the discipline of any Romulan.

"Subcommander, we are approaching the source of the tachyon signals." The crew had been waiting for this moment. Still, there was no point in rushing things.

"Analyze the source," Argelian ordered.

"It appears to be a hyperspace gate nearly identical the one we had entered."

"Will it respond to our activation signal?" This was a diplomatic mission after all and a first contact situation. It would be too suspicious and might provoke an attack if the _iTemet/i _exited hyperspace under its own power while a hyperspace gate was available. Such action might be misinterpreted as a sneak attack.  
"I believe so,"

"Sent the signal," Argelian ordered.

The _iTemet/i _exited the Gate and found itself in orbit over the second planet in a trinary star system. The crew released the breath they had subconsciously held back. The space around them was clear; there were no waiting warships ready to shoot them down the moment they came out of hyperspace. This had been the crew's main fear all during their trip in hyperspace, that they might come out on the other side only to meet their end at the hands of some unknown terror, with no warning and no honor or acknowledgement for their sacrifice.

"Give me a full scan of the system," Argelian too felt a weight lift from his chest.

"Subcommander, our hull is being bombarded by tachyon particles." Lieutenant Rhiana stood rigidly over her science console. Some would have mistaken her for a Vulcan if it wasn't for the ridges over her eyebrow. "It's coming from the surface of the planet."

"Communications?" The Lieutenant affirmed. Argelian signaled the comm. Officer.

The alien that met him on the main screen was the last thing Argelian expected to see.

"Human?" How could they have colonized so far into the Beta Quadrant? Despite conventional thinking the creature before him did indeed appear to be human, though dressed like none Argelian had ever seen. The alien looked surprised. He was a fat man with hair that stood up in a semicircle around his scalp.

"I am Carn Marray, military governor of Polgraph. And you are, sir?"

Argelian realized his slip but he also saw the governor's eyes. The man had no recognition of Romulans, which was strange indeed. If they were human, how was it that they did not know of the Romulan Star Empire – the enemy of the Federation for generations? It was a question he would have to ask later. "I am subcommander Argelian Mirok of the Romulan Star Empire. We have come a long way on a mission of exploration." 

"How did they get here? Are they really humans? If not, why is it that they recognize humanity?" Argelian's superiors would find the answer for these questions most fascinating. 

"Interesting. And you are alone in this area of space?" The man had an ethereal bright shine in his eyes, like he had just seen an unguarded treasure. Argelian recognized that look. He would be easy to manipulate.

"We have several ships exploring this area of space. However, you are the first people we have contacted."

"In that case, welcome to the Centauri Republic, the great Lion of the galaxy!" Carn proclaimed. "Perhaps you have heard of us?"

"Unfortunately Governor we have not had that pleasure. You see we are from a fair distance away and only recently discovered hyperspace travel."

It was a strange moment; both Centauri and Romulan were thinking almost the same thing. Prey, that's what they thought of each other. Only Argelian did a better job of hiding it.

"How is it then subcommander, that you know of the Earthers and not of the great Centauri?"

The subcommander was engrossed by what this Centauri was saying. Many strange and interesting possibilities were being presented.

"I was not aware human was a species in this part of space. The word human is a greeting used among our people, the exact meaning of which has been lost to history." The Centauri seemed to have bought the story. He didn't press the matter further.

"I have many questions subcommander."

"As do I, Governor Carn. Perhaps we should meet in person to discuss our potential relationship further."

Carn didn't immediately reply. His mind was turning furiously. "I would like that. However, there are several matters I must attend to. If it is not too much to ask, please stay in orbit while we attend to these matters."

"Of course governor, we will await your call."

"One more thing subcommander. We are expecting quite a bit of traffic from the jump gate in the next few hours. If you could please take up position at these coordinates…" A nod from his science officer indicated the coordinates had been received.

"I understand governor Carn. iTemet/i, out."

The screen cut out. Argelian looked to the pilot.

"The coordinates are on the far side of the planet."

"Very well, set a course."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

At the precisely scheduled time, Lord Refa of the Centauri arrived at one of his family holdings in the Polgraph system. He had come to Polgraph to personally investigate the decreased productivity of the recent months. Polgraph was the economic backbone of the Refa house and an important resource to the Republic.

As Refa relaxed in his luxury shuttle with a cup of Brivari, an aid came up.

"My Lord, the governor has been waiting for two hours."

Refa stood up, adjusted his stylish suit and checked his image in the mirror.

Outside, Refa was greeted by a dozen soldiers in military formation. They all looked like they had their finest uniform on, the ones that haven't been worn in ages and didn't quite fit anymore. On the other side were governor Carn and his aid.

"Ah, my Lord Refa you honor us with your presence." Carn bowed deeply, the hatred in his eyes was quickly hidden away. "Welcome to Polgraph…"

Refa spoke before Carn had the chance to finish. "Governor… Carn is it?" Carn had something to say to that but Refa didn't give him the chance. "I'm here to investigate certain rumors. I hope for your sake they are only rumors."

"Let me assure you my Lord that they are nothing more than baseless lies and false accusations."

"Yet word of rebellion and mismanagement has reached even the Emperor's ears. No governor, I think there could be some truth to these lies if it was spoken by so many. Yes?"

"The Emperor…?"

"Yes, the Emperor, and he has ordered me to personally investigate the matter."

Carn went pale. He felt the need to throw up, and it wasn't because of his hangover. "Let me… Let me reassure you Lord Refa, there is no rebellion nor will there ever be."

"We shall see. In the meantime I will be spending the next few days assessing your situation." Refa had the look that he expected something and it took Carn a second to catch on.

"Oh, oh. My Lord, I have prepared a feast in your honor. If you could grace us with your presence later tonight…" Refa walked passed him without another word not even paying him another thought. Carn had seen into Refa's eyes. There was no sense of recognition. In some ways this made him hate the man even more.

The governor escorted Refa to the guest quarters. As he left he didn't notice his aid had stayed behind.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Subcommander, a ship is approaching from the far side of the planet."

"Tactical analysis?"

"Anti-matter reactors, several energy cannons and missile launchers with nuclear warheads. Approximately 300 Centauri on board. They are hailing us."

Argelian did not answer.

"Sir, shall we reply?"

"Not yet. Lieutenant, can you access their data core without being detected."

"Attempting now… I have achieved access. I am downloading their data. It is encoded but we should be able to decode it in time."

"Open a channel."

A different Centauri appeared before the Romulans, this one much slimmer than the last and with a much more arrogant expression on his face.

"I am subcommander Argelian Mirok of the Romulan Star Empire. I was under the impression that governor Carn would be contacting us." If the Centauri took offence he didn't show it.

"Greetings subcommander. I am Lord Refa of the noble House of Refa – one of the rulers of the Centauri Republic. And as for Carn, he is merely governor of a small outpost. He does not have the authority to negotiate on behave of the Republic."

"I see. And may I assume you have that authority?"

"I do. If there are no objections subcommander, I would very much like to meet in person."

"Agreed, perhaps you would like a tour of our ship?"

"I will be delighted. Shall we say in one hour?"

"In one hour then," Argelian agreed. The screen went blank. Argelian turned to Lieutenant Rhiana. "Has the programming been completed?"

"It should be convincing to their sensors."

"Good, tell the crew to get into position."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lord Refa's shuttle had been directed to a large bay toward the aft section of the _iTemet/i._

"They must not get many visitors," Refa commented as he observed the pilot take his shuttle into the alien ship. For one thing the bay was entirely too small, just enough room for one shuttle. The bay doors closed behind him.

"Nitrogen oxygen atmosphere. The bay is pressurized, my lord."

Refa, along with his trusted aid and contingent of Centauri centurions were greeted by the Romulan delegation that had been waiting for them. For a second time that day Refa was welcomed by a military salute. The alien that greeted them was a female. Just by looking at her Refa could tell she was a very cold woman, not unlike a proper Centauri woman of noble birth..

"I am Lieutenant Rhiana Gias; I am to take you to the subcommander." She gestured to one direction. Refa took it as a sign to follow.

"Tell me, Lieutenant. How is it that you speak our language?" Refa asked his guide who seemed to be content to just lead them though the halls.

"We have developed a device called the Universal Translator which quickly and efficiently translates many languages."

"Even languages you have yet to learn?"

"Yes. The device operates by sensing the intentions behind the words and compares the grammatical and semantic structure of your sentences to our known language database."

"Fascinating, you must have encountered may races to have developed a library large enough for this translator to work."

It was a loaded question but the Lieutenant had already prepared a response. "On the contrary, we are a relatively isolated people. There must be many similarities between our two languages."

Refa and his guards followed Rhiana while the Romulan Uhlans followed the Centauri. Eventually they reached a large double door that opened with a loud mechanical hiss in response to their approach. The Centauri never noticed the holodeck doors faded away as they followed the Lieutenant inside.

"This is our engineering section," Lieutenant Rhiana explained. "The iTemet/i is powered by 3 of our largest fusion reactors with a maximum power output of almost one billion gigawatts."

"Very impressive." Refa noted. The Centauri lord stood over the transparent partition that separated him and the reactors - the 3 massive cylinders that extended downward. To Refa it was anything but impressive.

"The main engines are our next stop. I believe you will find our propulsion system most interesting.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lord Refa finally reached the conference room where subcommander Argelian waited. By that point the Centauri lord was quite bored with the Romulan's attempts to impress him. His mind numbing tour did not raise his opinions any. "Still these Romulans had something to offer," he thought back to the reactors and engines, they were most unimpressive. Their protein re-sequencing technology on the other hand… Something to exploit.

"Jolan Tru, Lord Refa. I am Subcommander Argelian. It is an honor to meet you at last." Refa sized the man up. He was thin and held himself rigidly. Typical military, Refa decided silently. Refa responded with his own greeting. The trusted aid stood behind him.

"I'm sure you have many questions and I'm happy to answer them." Refa told the Romulan.

"Indeed I have many questions, first and foremost is what has been on our minds for some time. What is the Centauri Republic?"

"The Centauri Republic is an ancient institution that dates back almost a thousand years of space travel. Our territory is vast, with many protectorate worlds that had joined us for protection from the dangers of the universe. You will not find a more advanced race than the Centauri in this part of the universe. Does that satisfy you subcommander?"

"And what of your government?"

"Our main governing body is the Centaurum, a forum with a representative body which I am part of and have significant influence."

"Your governor spoke of a race called 'Humans'. I am curious, are they part of the Centauri Republic as well?"

"They are a minor power that occupy several systems far away from here. Your people bear remarkable resemblance to them but even more so to us." Refa's mind turned with the possibilities. Finally he decided on a course of action. "Tell me subcommander, was there ever a time in your history when your people migrated from another part of the galaxy to where you are now?"

The look of surprise on Argelian's face told Refa everything he needed.

"Yes, how is it that you know of this?"

"A long time ago," Refa began. "The Centauri controlled much of the galaxy. We had colonies far and wide."

Argelian had seen recordings of Ambassador Spock back in the day. The Vulcan did a gesture with his eyebrow. Argelian was hard pressed to suppress the urge to imitate the old Vulcan.

"This might be hard to believe but it is possible our two people are related. Our physical similarities; this form we share is such a rarity among the stars. Imagine it subcommander, two brothers separated by the vast distances of space, reunited at last after millennia of separation. Think of the wonders we can achieve together."

Argelian took a moment to recompose himself, but by all accounts he appeared to be at a loss for words. "If that is true," he paused. "Then there is much we need to discuss."

About an hour later the talk between Argelian and Refa seem to have reached a climax.

"It is agreed then. Our ambassador will arrive here in exactly 4 months."

"And I will be here, waiting." Refa had to control the laughter threatening to undo everything. This was too easy, he thought. And now there was only one minor detail to attend to.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Back on Polgraph, Carn Marray had received a summons from Lord Refa.

"Ah, Carn come in, come in." he motioned for the other Centauri to enter. "You wouldn't believe the conversation I had in the last few hours."

Carn had a feeling where this was going. After Refa had suddenly returned to his ship there was only one thing that could have happened.

"Yes, Carn. Vol betrayed you."

Carn was going to faint in a second.

"But I like your style. You know, I could use someone like you by my side, someone who can think on their feet." He starred straight into Carn's eyes. "But if you ever think about double crossing me, I'll make being the governor of a backwater world like Polgraph seem like heaven."

Carn could not agree fast enough.

"Oh, one more thing. Tell no one of the Romulans. Let's keep this our little secret." Carn nodded and accepted the glass of Brivai Refa offered. It was far better than the slosh he was used to drinking. "To the future."

"To the future," Carn replied.

To be continued... in Chapter 2: The Catalyst

Coming... sometime next week. I think.


	3. Chapter 2: The Catalyst

Star Trek: The Next Expansion

Chapter 2: The Catalyst

By Oberon

Good job Entilza for fine beta'ing!

Admiral Sela purposefully strolled through the soldiers that saluted her on either side as she made her way to the bridge. There, the officers of the Temet stood in silent anticipation of her arrival.

Subcommander Argelian greeted the Admiral as she entered. "Welcome aboard, Admiral. Let me say what an honor it is for you to come in person."

"Thank you, subcommander. The Praetor would like to let you know how grateful we are for the fine work you did. Your service to the empire will be noted."

The admiral went about inspecting the bridge stations, paying special attention to Lieutenant Rhiana's post. Sela was most curious with the Lieutenant ever so often stopping her explanation of hyperspace for clarification.

"Subcommander, is there some place where we can speak alone?" Sela asked.

"Of course, Admiral. This way."

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

The sub commander found himself alone with Admiral Sela. She was reported to be one of Tal'aura's most ruthless supporters, operating within both the military and the Tal'shiar to root out any traitors. These days that could just be about any officer or Ulhan that spoke out against the Praetor. Argelian just couldn't help but be a little apprehensive.

"I do not have to tell you how much this expedition meant to the empire. Quite frankly, with the Remans and the lost of the senate, the empire is fragmented and opportunities for destabilizing forces arise around every corner. You have no idea how much the Centauri can do for us." Sela began.

Argelian was speechless, he had no idea the woman could be so frank. He had always imagined the Admiral as the stealthiest snake in the pit. For her to come out and say these things, the situation at home must be worst than he had thought. Of course he had his doubts.

"In these uncertain times the empire could use a man like you - someone that epitomizes military pride and honor. It is no secret that your voyage has captured the imagination of the empire."

"I was merely performing my duty, Admiral." Argelian replies, not sure where Admiral Sela was going with this little chat.

"And he is humble too!" Sela exclaimed. "But that wouldn't do. You need to take pride in your work." He still did not understand.

"I don't understand."

"The people need to take their minds off the uncertainties. They need to feel pride in the military. Officers like you need to know that they are making a difference in the security the empire. What I'm saying; if you can stand with the Praetor in this. Show a unified front if you will, it will go a long way to stabilize the current political climate."

"I see, and let me speak frankly as well. What will be in it for me if I'm to go along with this show?"

Sela paused. From Argelian's reaction she had expected more convincing before they got down to business. Still this made things easier.

"So the 'For the greater good of the Empire' line is not going to work with you. This is way is actually better. I'm prepared to offer you a promotion to commander – to work directly under me for the Praetor. In addition you will be granted land on Romulus."

"That sounds like a very good deal and I would be foolish to pass it up." He continued cautiously. "However, Admiral Donatra's star is on the rise while the Praetor is loosing grip of the Empire. It would be beyond foolish for me to board a sinking ship. Still what you suggested is not totally…" he chose his word, "unreasonable."

"Then the question is, subcommander. What is it that you want?"

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

"Lieutentant, the Admiral wants to have a word with you."

"Yes, Sir!"

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

The march of a dozen soldiers from the streets announced the arrival of someone important. Speculation grew rampant as to the identity of the individual that merit such an entourage.

"Ael Tal'aura, Praetor of the Romulan Star Empire and S'Ten, Keeper of the Praetor's office!"

The inhabitants of the large villa style estate were at awe. The hostess horridly went to welcome the new arrives.

"Ah, Lady Hiren. You look as lovely as ever." Tal'aura complimented the hostess as she went to greet them.

The hostess bowed in respect. "Praetor, I did not expect to be graced by your presence and so did not make the proper preparations for your arrival. What brings you to our humble gathering this day?"

"None sense, deer lady. Are we not friends? Am I not always welcome at your house?"

The hostess starred into the Praetor's eyes intensely, emotions and urges barely held back by an iron will and the presence of the Praetor's guards.

"I place great value in our friendship. Please, come in." the Praetor walked past her to find her own way in the party. None dared to tell her where to go or with whom to speak.

"S'Ten, it has been a long time." The hostess met the Keeper. "Come this way; let me introduce you to my daughter. I believe former Praetor Neral is around here somewhere." She led the Keeper in, the soldiers keeping guard at the door.

From the corner of her eye, the Praetor spotted someone…

"Praetor Neral, I'm so glad to see that you have recovered from your condition." Tal'aura began, her eyes probing for signs of lingering weakness.

The former praetor faced Tal'aura with instant recognition. He turned on the charm that had allowed him to deceive the great Ambassador Spock so long ago.

"As do I Praetor. As do I. However, I am no longer praetor. My friends call me Neral."

"Neral, now that you are back on your feet, so to speak. What are you plans? As I have heard, many of your former constituents are still very much supporting your return."

"Unfortunately, Praetor, looks can be deceiving. I may look fit but in truth my health has only marginally improved in the last few months. This is the first time I had been out of the house since my illness."

"I see, your health should be your first priority. I'm sure the people can make due without your leadership for at least a little while longer."

The former praetor knobbed and took a seat in a nearby chair that looked comfortable. He gestured for Tal'aura to do the same. He was much relieved. "I'm surprised, Praetor, by your attendance. I was under the impression that you and madam Aidoann had a falling out."

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Midway through the servant's 5th round the hostess called the assembled guests to attention. No one had noticed a few select individuals among them had joined the hostess moments before. Now everyone's eyes were on them.

Tal'aura recognized one of the guests up there immediately, "She must had been hiding form me the entire time." The other was the hostess Aidoann's daughter. The last was a younger male she did not know at all.

"It is not often one gets the opportunity to unite two young people in marriage. It is rarer honor still to do so for your daughter and the child of your dearest friend."

Tal'aura turned pale at the announcement. An alliance between two of her greatest opposition was not what she had expected.

"With much pride and fondness, I would like to announce the engagement of my daughter, Teelis and the son of Admiral Donatra, Delon."

The young Romulan, Delon, was perhaps ten years younger than the bride to be - a marriage of love indeed.

"May their union of true love bring glory to both our houses." The prospect of this new alliance could mean dire consequences for Tal'aura's continue rule. The Hirens hated her for murdering the former Praetor, Aidoann's husband, and Donatra had openly opposed her. With Donatra's control of the military and the Hiren's money and resources, they could take the Empire with little challenge.

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Admiral Sela studied the Lieutenant before her. The younger Romulan had a cold outward demeanor like Sela herself. Her eyes possessed a hint of the vast intellect that had been trained to be logical and unemotional. It was too much like a Vulcan for Sela's liking.

"Lieutenant, being the most knowledgably person in hyperspace physics, I believe you would be better serving the empire at a Starbase, working with some of our finest scientists." she said. "This is in no way an order as I am not in charge of personnel assignments. But I want you to think about it, arrangements could be made if you decide to serve the empire in this manner."

Lieutenant Rhiana didn't immediately reply. Admiral Sela's offer was certainly a good opportunity; however the _Temet_ seemed to be where the action was going to take place. If anything her interests would be better served by staying aboard. "How soon do you need an answer?" she asked.

"There is some time still before the _Temet's _next deployment. I would like your answer before then." Sela dismissed the Lieutenant. An urgent message from the Praetor forced her to cut the meeting short.

Just as the Lieutenant was about to leave the room, the Admiral had something more to say. "Don't disappoint me." She added coldly.

With the Lieutenant gone, Sela turned her attention to the Praetor.

"Admiral, we need to move up our plans ahead of schedule. Admiral Donatra and the Hiren family have formed an alliance…"

"I understand," Sela replied. This was an unexpected twist, but not a fatal one. 

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

It had been exactly four months since the _Temet_ had left through the jumpgate over Polgraph. Since then Lord Refa had locked down the mining colony. No news of the Romulans got out, no transmission was left uncensored. The loyal Refa house guards on Polgraph oversaw every aspect of the loading operations in the spaceport and communication center, though many had complained about the heat more than once.

Lord Refa sat in his command chair as the time approached. He had done everything in his power to keep word of the Romulans from reaching the Emperor and was quite proud of his work. It was better if these people negotiated with a representative of the people rather than the emperor of an empire. From his conversation with Argelian, these Romulans seemed like the democratic type.

But there were still some time between now and when the Romulans were expected to arrive. Just enough to enjoy a fine glass of Bravari.

All too soon the Jumpgate activated. "Show time," Refa whispered to himself, swallowing the last of his drink and heading for the bridge. 

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Lord Refa's evaluative gaze honed in on the Romulan opposite the conference table.

"Lord Refa, I presume…"

"Come Ambassador, there is no need for such formality between our two people. Please, call me Antanio." The Romulan was an older gentleman, with graying hair and a thin constitution. To Refa, the other man looked as if he had survived some great ordeal. But only barely and it had left the Romulan weakened.

"If you wish. I am Neral, Ambassador of the Romulan Star Empire."

The two sat, facing each other.

"Tell me Ambassador Neral, have your people given much thought to the possibility I brought up with Subcommander Argelian?" Refa's predatory eyes measured every facial response in an attempt to sense the other's intensions.

Neral kept his expressive passive. "What you have suggested is still being debated by our senate and scientific community. The lack of DNA for comparison had also made our job more difficult." Neral said. "Perhaps one of your aides can oblige us?"

Refa looked Neral right in the eye, giving a smile that appeared sincere. "Of course, perhaps once our negotiations have concluded."

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Lord Refa had been in negotiation with the Romulans for two days, but had gotten nowhere. The Romulans were stalling. As the third day began, Refa had suggested they break and reconvene on the fourth day. Neral had agreed without hesitation. This had made Refa very suspicious. He was back in his quarters, contemplating weather to open another bottle of brivari, when his aide came to him.

"My Lord, our spies have reported a Romulan envoy making contact with the Narns. They have arranged a secret meeting in neutral territory."

So this was what they been up to, Refa cursed silently. These Romulans were more slippery than he gave them credit for.

"Contact captain Carn, it is about time these Romulans learn that space is a dangerous place."

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Carn Murray stood silently on the bridge of the Raider flagship. It was a dirty place, lacking the military discipline for tidiness; the ship hasn't been properly cleaned up after numerous fatalities. Carn could clearly make out several large splatters of dried Pak'ma'ra blood on the walls. It had been left there after simple scrubbing had failed to remove the stain. And Carn was sure there was a piece of the Pak'ma'ra still on the bridge, somewhere… or so the smell told him.

The captain of the ship noticed Carn's uneasiness. "Don't worry mister Mollari. We are professionals. We'll get the job done."

"I hope so. For the amount my employer is paying, you had better," Carn replied. He had used an alias when dealing with these less than scrupulous people, no point in them knowing his real identity.

The Brakiri captain eyed him. "Is that a threat Mr. Mol-la-ri?" he deliberately emphasized the name. Just barely hinting that he knew Carn's identify but in reality he had no clue.

"No, no." Carn stuttered. "Of course not. However, I can't predict what my employer might do in that event."

The Brakiri gave a grunt and returned to running the ship.

"It is time," Carn announced.

The raider ship jumped into normal space and began deploying fighters.

"There they are," the captain called out.

A small scout vessel was 2,000 kilometers off their starboard side, a Narn cruiser parked directly in front of them. Green and predatory, the scout was definitely of Romulan design.

"Destroy them both, no witnesses," Carn reminded them. But the raiders were already moving. Two of the forward fighters moved to fire on the Narn while Carn's ship targeted the Romulan Scout.

"Fire!" the Brakiri captain ordered. A large burst of laser fire slammed into the Romulan ship, but instead of hull it met a shimmering blue energy field. The hull wasn't even burned. Everyone on the raider watched in shock.

"The Romulans have shields!" Carn screamed before a strange sensation overtook him.

The Brakiri watched Carn disappear from the bridge in a green haze, but could do nothing about it.

"Get us out of here, signal the others!" But it was too late. Before his eyes, one of his ships blew up as they came close to the Narn vessel.

"What's happening!" he demanded. He had not seen either ship fire and neither had their gun ports open.

Off to their portside was a ship that definitely was not there before. It fired again, and the bridge vanished in a blaze of green light.

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

That very night, Emperor Turhan of the Centauri Republic received his first present from the Romulans. As he held court with the nobles and ministers around him, a loud feminine scream pierced his ear and he winced.

It was a severed head – a Centauri head. How it had gotten there no one knew, although from witness accounts it had simply appeared out of thin air. There was a note shoved inside the mouth of the unfortunate man. Turhan went pale as he read it.

"Lord Refa has ordered an attack of our ships without provocation. The Romulan Star Empire now declares war on the Centauri Republic. Your mistake."

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Light years away, Londo Mollari found himself summoned to the office of General Lefcourt, Earth Dome. There the General and by his side Hastur, aide to President Levy, were waiting for him.

"As I'm sure you're well aware, Earth has been looking to her interests recently and there is a race we would like to know if you would share any information on," Lefcourt said, "They're called the Minbari. We've only heard rumors about them and we want to know whether they pose threat to the Alliance."

"We have had some dealings with them, but almost nothing in my lifetime," the Centauri liaison to Earth Dome replied.

"We're planning on sending an expedition to Minbari space to try and make contact with them," Hastur injected.

"I wouldn't if I were you. They are powerful and secretive, I would even say dangerous, yes?"

"Be that as it may, we need to be prepared for all eventualities. Anything, even maps, would be much appreciated."

"The only advice I can give is this: send only one ship. They are the oldest, and most advanced of the space faring races. I wouldn't threaten them if I were you. Even when the Lion strode across a quarter of the galaxy unopposed, we never dared attack the Minbari! You can be guaranteed that if you leave them alone, they will treat you the same."

Neither the aide nor the general really listened to Mollari's advice. Earth had beaten the Dilgar when most of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds bowed to their will. They could deal with the Minbari. Human determination and ingenuity would see them through.

"Arrogance and stupidity in one package, how efficient…" Londo said. Later he would be known for that comment. "I only hope," said Londo, "that in your stumbling around in the dark, you do not wake the dragon. I promise I will try and get you what you want, but no more. If you do not listen to my advice now, then you are the ones who will face the consequences." He paused, something occurred to him. "But it will not be free."

"What is it that you're asking for?" Lefcourt asked suspiciously.

"I'll send you a list by tomorrow." He reassured the general, "Do not trouble yourself. I'll keep the list short." If the humans were going down, then the Centauri would have to get everything out of them that they could while there was still a chance. "These are desperate times for the Republic", Londo noted silently.

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

The _EAS Prometheus_ arrived at the coordinates provided by Ambassador Mollari. The Prometheus's scanners pick up the silhouette of the Grey Council's vessel, the _Valen'tha._ Captain Jankowski was nervous.

"This system was supposed to be clear. Unless they were waiting for us." He wanted to see what the Minbari were up to. "Take us closer," Jankowski orders his helmsman.

"Sir, our orders were to avoid contact," his first officer reminded him.

"Take us closer!" Jankowski demanded.

"Sir, our scanners can't pick up much!" One of the techs said in alarm.

"Closer! We need to find as much information about their ships as we can," Jankowski replied.

"Sir!"

"We handled the Dilgar; we can handle a few stray ships."

The Minbari ship had detected the _Prometheus_ and was on an intercept course. Curious, they scanned the human vessel. But their scanners were so strong that they interfered with the Earth ship's jump engines, inadvertently backing the Prometheus into a wall.

In his chair Captain Jankowski took this as a sign of hostility. "Red Alert! And hail the Minbari. Minbari vessel, we mean no harm but you're damaging my ship. Please stop this, we don't want to harm you!"

The Minbari did not respond and continued on their course. Their gun ports opened as they approached.

0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0p0

Out near the edge of Centauri space, a second battle was about to take place.

The captain of a Primus class battle cruiser watched in horror as 20 Romulan warbirds came from nowhere and started dissecting his small escort fleet. Green beams and glowing spheres impacted and tore ships apart, some in a single hit. The bridge rocked as the ship was hit by a disruptor.

"Return Fire!" The Centauri captain demanded. He watched his remaining ships fire what weapons they could, but the few shots that hit the Romulan vessels were absorbed effortlessly by their energy shields. 

Another hit rocked the Primus, this time it threw the ship spinning out of control toward the atmosphere. Beside him another Primus was destroyed, the light from the explosion making the Romulan ships look even more like predatory birds as they swooped in for the kill.

"Main reactors are down," his officers screamed out. "We have no weapons."

His vessel was rocked by another explosion. Without power the great Centauri warship drifted ever downward, caught by the planet's gravity. The Centauri captain sat helplessly as another vessel was destroyed. His own death would be much more drawn out. The captain closed his eyes, saying one last prayer to the Great Maker as the bridge began melting and flaming atmosphere rushed in.

In orbit, their task done, the Romulan fleet recloaked and warped out, waiting for their next chance to strike.

To be continued...

in Chapter 3: Beach Head

Just a note: Hiren was the name of the Praetor in Star Trek: Nemesis. He is the one that was killed when Tal'aura activated the Thaleron Radiation device. This explains Aidoann's, Hiren's wife, hostility toward the current Praetor. Neral was the praetor before Hiren. In the ST:TNG episode Unification part I and II, he was the proconcul that lured Spock to Romulus inorder to get his cooperation in his scheme to take over Vulcan. Later in ST:DS9 he was elected to Praetor during the Dominion war. A curious note, Neral was a young man in TNG while he appeared much older in DS9. In here I gave him an illness that forced him out of public office. You can interpret that anyway you wish.


	4. Chapter 3: Beachhead

Start Trek: The Next Expansion

Chapter 3: Beachhead

By Oberon

Thanks for Entilza for beta

General Grovous once more felt his Primus battle cruiser vibrate under his feet as one of those ominous bird ships scored a glancing blow to the front armor. They were just toying with him now, taunting and wounding him instead of killing him outright. He swallowed his pride and ordered his ship into evasive maneuvers - whatever good that would do. The severely damaged forward section of his ship could not take much more punishment. Beside him one of his escorts was destroyed, the explosion rocked his ship once again.

"Sir, we're receiving a transmission from the planet!" His officer called out.

"Authenticate," Grovous ordered.

"It is encrypted with the Imperial Naval cipher."

"One hundred and fifty ships… And we're cut down like nothing." The Centauri general shook his head in resignation. "Very well, we got what we came for. Get us out of here."

The General's primus powered up its jump engines, ready to makes its escape, but the Romulans would not let them off so easily. They fired as the General ordered the jump.

"Reactors damaged!" The officer panicked.

"Looks like they're serious this time," the General closed his eyes as he watched the warbird come around for the kill. Then suddenly his last escort vessel came from behind and got between them and the Romulans. And for that they were destroyed. The explosion from the Vor'chan guarding Grovous shredded the Primus's remaining armor and causing severed internal damage, but the Vor'chan's death allowed the General's ship time to open a jump point and escape.

The few stray fighters that hadn't been destroyed were left to their fate.

000000000

In the last hours of the day, Turhan finally received word from the negotiators he had sent to meet the Romulans.

"Well?"

The man was reluctant to answer, knowing his emperor would not like what he has to say. "The Romulans are willing to call a truce…" he slowly stated.

Turhan breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good news," but a moment later he saw the look on the diplomat's face. There was more. "But?" he urged the man. The man's demeanor suddenly gave Turhan a sinking feeling.

"On the condition that they receive claim to the systems they already took from us… and… and three others." Turhan's face darkened. There was more, "including Marigol." Turhan's fist clenched. The Marigol colony was a major hub of hyperspace lanes for the Centauri Republic, as well as being part of the industrial heartland. The factories on the colony were responsible for more than 25 percent of all ammunition and 40 percent of consumer goods production. In addition, the shipyards in orbit could be reconfigured to repair and refuel the Romulan warbirds. The Romulans could be entrenched in the Centauri Republic for years with no way of getting them out. Without control of the jumpgate over Marigol, the captured territories would be cut off with no way for the Centauri to retake them later on without first taking on the fleet stationed over Marigol. No, doubt the Romulans would fortify the defenses to make any attempt to retake the captured territory extremely costly.

This offer of peace was not an offer at all. He was not expected to accept and had no choice but to refuse. If he accepted this peace it would mean handing over more territory to the invaders without contest and allowing the enemy time to fortify their hold in the sector.

There was no choice, this was a not a war of retribution with the Romulans. This was a war of conquest with the survival of the Republic on the line. The Centauri Republic had to fight or submit. Perhaps this had the Romulans goal all along, Turhan thought. He felt true hatred then, like nothing he had felt before. He wanted to lash out, to wrap his hands around the man responsible. Slowly, he would squeeze and watch the life drain from Refa's face for he had given the Romulans the one thing they'd needed - an excuse to legitimize their invasion. "Damn you Refa!" Turhan whispered. Personally feelings aside, the Centauri would fight, the alternative was slavery and the Lion would never submit.

With a tired wave he dismissed the diplomat.

000000000

General Grovous limped into the operation center on Centauri Prime. He clutched at his chest wound as he felt his heart race and his lungs fill with blood. He coughed and could not stop. Finally the fit subsided and he wiped his mouth with his sleeve. His trusted aid had to help him into a chair.

"Sire," Grovous began but the old Centauri was already at the limits of his endurance. "I bring news…" another coughing fit, he wiped away the blood that was purged from his lungs. "The Quadrant B resistance…" Each breath was becoming more difficult with each precious second as he made what very well could be his last report. "Defense satellites..."

The aid had returned with medical personal but the General waved them away, intent to deliver the news that had been paid for in Centauri blood.

Turhan pleaded with the General to accept medical aid. "Please, speak no more. You wouldn't do us much good rotting in your grave."

But the General was insistent. He shoved a young medic aside as he tried to treat his wounds. "Urgent…" he managed to say.

Unable to speak anymore he reached into his pocket and retrieved the disk containing the message. Grovous wanted to hand the message to Turhan in person but his strength failed him. The disk fell to the floor as his world went dark.

000000000 

The Emperor's people studied every bit of data contained in the transmission from the Quadrant B resistance. The most important detail however, seems to be captured images of several Romulan Warbirds being repaired near the Quadrant B colony.

Turhan was a leader and although an able soldier in his time, he was not fully briefed on every technological detail. "How is it that our defense satellites managed to damage their ships while our mighty Primus battle cruisers could not?" The emperor looked on, awaiting the answer from his advisers and the admiralty.

"We believe it has something to do with the satellites themselves. You see, the satellites are a fixed defense platform and as such they mount a much more powerful version of the beam weapon on our Primus class battleships." One young officer explained.

Another officer interrupted. "Of course it could have nothing to do with our satellites." He pointed out. "Their shields could have suffered a malfunction at a critical moment which allowed our weapons to penetrate." It was a sobering thought that no one wanted to consider. Were they truly impotent against this new enemy?

"That is highly unlikely," the first countered. It soon turned into a heated argument between the admiralty, who placed their faith in their weapons, and the scientific staff who was more realistic in their assessment.

Turhan could take no more of this.

"Stop!" he commanded. "I want answers, not arguments over who in this room has the best eyesight." Turhan stood, his stern eyes passed over each of the people at the table. "Now, what do we know?"

"Pull up the sensor logs." Someone told the techs.

On the screen the image of a warbird came into range of the satellite's main weapon. The weapon fired and it was clear the shot did damage to the Romulan cruiser.

"Play back the last 5 seconds."

Once again the weapon fired.

"Stop!" the admiral called out. The now familiar blue hue that signified Romulan energy shields was clearly seen protecting the ship. "It's obvious the beam met resistance before doing damage to the hull."

"What do we know about that ship?" another officer asked from across the table.

"Very little, we were not able to recover any sensor logs from the ships we sent."

"What about the other ships reported to had been damaged?" Turhan injected.

The admiral knobbed, "Display sensor recordings for satellite number seventeen," the second Admiral turned to the screen. Again, the video showed a warbird come into range of the defense satellite. The warbird fired on a nearby Primus, totally ignoring the satellite. The Primus was destroyed, ripped apart completely by one of those green orbs. The Warbird then turned toward the satellite, but the heavy weapons on satellite seventeen locked on and fired first. Again the blue glow surrounded the Warbird, but the beam weapon was able to make contact with the hull. A large scorch mark appeared where the beam hit.

The Romulan ships backed away after discovering their energy shields would not protect them from the satellite's weapons. The satellite fired again, this time scoring a direct hit to the rear of the warbird. The video ended.

"At this point satellite seventeen was destroyed by fire from another ship."

"We can beat them back, they are not invincible!" thought Turhan. For the first time since the war started, Turhan could feel a ray of hope.

000000000

Turhan sat on his throne deep in thought. Finally he came to a decision.

"Admiral, I want you to take our fleets and prepare the defenses at Marigol. That is where they will strike next. Take as many ships as you need, conscript them from the defense of our core worlds if you have to. Marigol must hold, no matter the cost."

"Sire, that will leave Centauri Prime undefended!" Admiral Varia objected.

"I am aware, Admiral. But we have no choice, our soldiers need a victory. The other houses want me to placate the enemy while going around my back to secure their own comfort." He clutched his fists tightly at the thought of such degeneracy. Cowards and traitors the nobles may have been, but he needed them. "We need a victory if we are to bring them into this war; they need to know that we stand a chance of victory."

"I understand, we will destroy them and show the Lion still has fangs!" Admiral Varia exclaimed.

"Good. According to our latest intelligence their ships are still being repaired after the last attack. You still have some time, make good use of it."

"Yes, Sire. For the Republic!" Varia saluted and departed to prepare for the eventual attack.

Turhan turned to one of the servants. 

"Bring Refa to me."

000000000

The war… it was nothing more than a distraction.

"You may leave Lieutenant." Admiral Sela dismissed the young Romulan before her with a gesture. She watched her leave; the meeting had been cut short due to an urgent communiqué from Praetor Tal'aura.

"Admiral, we have to move up our plans ahead of schedule." The Praetor's grave features came through in the dim light. "Donatra and the Hiren family had formed an alliance."

This was an unexpected turn of events. "I understand," she would have to move fast as the news of the event signaled the beginning of a new game.

"You have my authority to draft elements from the 1st, 2nd, 6th and 8th fleets to form the taskforce." Those were fleets where Admiral Donatra's influence was the strongest.

"Order received. The Admiral will never know what happened to her loyal supporters until we're halfway across the quadrant." Sela swore confidently.

"I'm counting on you," with that the Praetor ended the transmission.

Soon it would begin. The glory of the Romulan Star Empire would be restored by the blood of Donatra's allies, and soon the Romulan Empire would finally take its rightful place among the stars.

000000000 

**Quadrant B Colony, Beta Quadrant.  
Romulan Command Center...**

Admiral Sela hid her smile from the crew. Slowly everything was falling into place. The Empire was walking over the Centauri with little challenge. Already they had secured four systems in the outer frontier of their empire. All too soon this part of space would be cut off from the rest of the xeno civilizations here. The news of victories would surely put out many fires back home as the people turned from domestic issues to support the conquest of this sector.

Sela strolled leisurely through the command center, avoiding the workman as she went by. She took note of their hard labor. Some would not survive, and for a second she thought she cared. But Sela pushed that stray thought aside. She found commander Argelian directing the workman in the command center's construction.

"Commander, status report."

"The construction will be completed in 2 days Admiral. The repairs to the warbirds are proceeding on schedule. They should be fully operational by the end of the day." Argelian had noticed the Admiral approach. She had a smirk but Argelian didn't know what it was about and it wasn't his place to ask.

Sela acknowledged her subordinate. "Has there been any progress in countering the effects of the shield dampening weapon?"

During the battle of Quadrant B a probe had suddenly appeared just as the Romulan fleet was about to engage the Centauri defense force. The moment it came out of hyperspace the probe self-destructed, but in the process it released a high intensity energy wave that depolarized the Romulan shields.

"Lieutenant Rhiana is confident the modifications she made will render the shields immune to the dampening effect."

"Excellent, have her transmit the data to the fleet." Sela continued on her inspection.

"Admiral," Argelian stopped her before she got too far.

"Is there something else commander?"

"Just some concerns. If someone here could field such a weapon in so short of time... They must truly be powerful and could become a threat given enough time to prepare."

"That thought has occurred to me," Sela replied. "I have already given orders for the scouting parties to be on the look out for such a civilization. Hopefully we can get to them before they become ready."

That would have to be enough. The unknown enemy's lack of direct action indicated they either did not have the stomach for combat or did not possess the industrial might to oppose Romulan plans at the moment. Whoever these people ware, the Romulan Star Empire would deal with them when the time came. 

000000000

**Marigol system, Beta Quadrant:**

As the time of the attack approached the tension of the Centauri fleet rose in anticipation. Quickly the crews went about their preparations, many in silence, and some faced panic in hiding. Some acted out their fears but were soon made examples of by their fellow soldiers. After that military discipline took over.

"Admiral, a ship is approaching." An officer informed Admiral Varia.

"Romulan?" he inquired. The fleet was hidden in hyperspace. The last preparation was still being made at this very moment. They were not ready.

"Negative. It's Refa."

Admiral Varia was instantly suspicious. The bastard that had started this so called incident had no place on the battlefield. "Hail them," the admiral ordered, and Refa's face appeared a moment later. The former lord of the Centauri was a wasting shadow of his former glory. No longer proud but still arrogant, he pissed off Varia just by looking at him.

"Refa, what are you doing here?" The admiral asked darkly, not entire happy to see Refa still in one piece. The arrogant smirk was long gone from Refa's face. The former lord grudgingly answered.

"By order of the Emperor, I am to make a last attempt to negotiate with the Romulans for peace." As reluctant as Refa was at the prospect of the upcoming task, the Admiral was more reluctant to let him stay. Still, orders were orders; he just wished the emperor had told him in advance.

"Very well, stay at these coordinates and await the Romulans. Do not divert your course and do not leave your assigned area. This is a war zone, not your private playground." With a grunt the Admiral dismissed him.

Refa Silently went his way. In his heart he swore vengeance against the impetuous Admiral. Once I'm back in the emperor's good graces… He thought.

000000000

Refa, just Refa now for he had been stripped of rank and honor, entered the bridge of the Primus battleship Valerious. He smelled of Bravari, which became a perpetual stench that followed him more loyally than his former retainer.

"Refa, a Romulan ship just appeared directly ahead." The Captain's tone was rude and contempt dripped from every word.

Refa hesitated. "Are you certain the fleet will be here to save us if the Romulans decide to open fire?"

The captain the Valerious had just about had it with the little man. "Stop wasting time, Refa." He raised his hand to signal the comm. "The Romulans are waiting."

The face of the Romulan was not someone Refa recognized. When the Romulan saw Refa's face his expression instantly darkened.

"Romulan commander, I am-"

"I know who you are, Lord Refa!" The Romulan replied. "What do you want? Have you come to beg for our mercy or surrender in the name of your Emperor?"

Put off balance by the Romulan, Refa managed to regroup, though it was fairly obvious. "I would like to sincerely apologize for my earlier actions against your people. My initial attack on your vessel was unprovoked and wrong." He felt completely deflated. The false bravado he built up during the journey here evaporated. "I am prepared to hear any reasonable-" he was careful to stress it had to be reasonable. "Terms you will propose."

"You desire peace?" the Romulan commander inquired.

"Yes!" Refa shouted.

"Then the terms are simple. You will give up your claim to this system as well as the ones already in our possession. You will-" the panic on the Romulan's face momentary confused Refa. "Back us off! NOW!"

Even as the Romulan commander ordered his crew to back his ship away, someone on the bridge of the Valerious moved to action.

"For the Republic!" The officer shouted.

Refa suddenly became aware of a rumbling on the ship. "What's going on?" he cluelessly wondered, and for a split second he saw himself explode. The bridge vanished in a massive anti-matter explosion. Refa's last thoughts were a raging fury for whoever had betrayed him.

000000000 

In hyperspace, Admiral Varia of the Centauri fleet listened to every word said on the bridge of the Valerious.

"Refa had failed. Of course I never really had faith in him. Sent the signal to jump." Now the real battle would begin.

000000000

Before the _Valerious_ had left Centauri Prime with Refa on board, it had been almost completely gutted and put back together. Every spare space in the ship was replaced with anti-matter tanks and rigged to self-destruct in the event that Refa failed to negotiate a truce. The Romulans had noticed too late that the Primus was filled to the brim with anti-matter and deuterium.

The Romulans tried to back away with their shields at full power, but the explosion was massive. The energy shields on the Norexian lasted a full four seconds in the fire. The warbird was tossed about while the force of the explosion stripped away armor and hull plating like paper. Finally residual anti-matter carried by the explosion bombarded the inner hull. The crew died a slow death.

Admiral Sela watched the destruction and the deception of the Centauri.

"Decloack, shields up!" Sela shouted out. There were only seconds left before the shockwave hit the remaining warbirds. Without shields the anti-matter would kill her crew even if the shockwave was not powerful enough to damage the ships' systems. The wave washed over them safely. Sela breathed a silent sigh of relief, but the next moment the Centauri attacked with everything they had. Hundreds of jump points opened before them. Centauri Primus and Vor'chans, along with thousands of fighter escorts equipped with nuclear missiles, fired at once.

The Romulan fleet was rocked by the Centauri fire. The first salvo had hit, but the combined multi-megaton explosion only managed to degrade the shields. The Centauri fired again, intending to take advantage of the momentary distraction.

The Romulans got over their shock quickly. They moved into formation and came right at the Centauri line. The Romulans retaliated for their earlier loss with a full alpha strike, and instantly seventeen Centauri capital ships were carved up. A few managed to survive intact, but the Centauri still had superior numbers and seventeen was only a small fraction of the two hundred capital ships present.

The Centauri continued to attack, but soon found their fire being mostly evaded by the swifter warbirds. Loses were beginning to mount as the Romulans fired a second round and shattered Primus and Vor'chan alike.

The Romulans accelerated pass the Centauri while completely ignoring the fight.

"Take us around for another run." Sela ordered.

"Target locked," the Centurion replied, smiling. His younger brother had been on the ship disabled in the explosion.

000000000

On board the command ship of the Centauri fleet, things were being to heat up while the battle quickly turned against them.

"Admiral, we can't take much more of this!" An officer called in panic. The Primus was rocked as another beside it was blown to atoms. Slowly the Centauri turned to face the warbirds, but more died in the attempt.

The admiral gritted his teeth. "Set course for the defense satellites. Full burn." The protection of the satellites was just a short distance away. But the Romulans did not let up, not even when the satellites powered up their main weapons. They kept coming and every time they would pick off more of the Centauri, slowly whittling them down.

During the slaughter, the Romulan warbird _Generex _floated dead in space, its crew had died an agonizing death due to anti-matter radiation poisoning. Forgotten by all, the cruiser drifted until it was snagged by large hooks that dug into the hull. For a second the meter thick cables connected to the hooks went taut and it seemed as if they would snap. But it did not, and slowly the Romulan warbird was wheeled in, at the pace of a snail, it was towed from the field of battle by a Centauri salvage vessel.

000000000

"Admiral!" An officer on Sela's flagship finally noticed what's going on. "The _Generex_!"

Sela's attention was momentary diverted from the battle. _So this is there plan. Steal our ships from right under us. Cleaver._ "Sent the _Temet_ to destroy them." As soon as the orders were sent, the Centauri salvage ship and the Generex disappeared into a hyperspace vortex.

"Damn it!" Sela swore. "Break off! Break off!" Sela shouted. The Centauri must not capture their ships for study. The entire campaign depended on the superiority of Romulan technology.

The Romulans turned away from their prey, ignoring the stray shots that came toward them from behind and the occasional fighters. The warbirds set a course for the last coordinates of their lost ship. "Prepare to open a singularity. We're getting our ship back." Sela promised. 

Commander Argelian of the _Temet_ came on the comm. "Admiral, our shields will be severely weakened in hyperspace," he warned.

Sela was beyond care. She would not be made a fool of by these Centauri. "Your concerns are noted and ignored." She turns to the helm. "Take us in."

The hyperspace vortex exploded to life before the Romulans. They entered without hesitation. And the next moment they were rocked by anti-matter explosions from behind. Fortunately, they were just out of range of the initial blast but the reverberating waves degraded precious shields.

"Admiral, we have appeared at the edge of an anti-matter mine field!" An officer called in panic. That was when they notice it. Thousand of ships of all sizes and classification – the main Centauri fleet had been waiting for them! As one, the Centauri fired. Their fire blocked out the orange dimension of hyperspace.

"Evasive maneuvers!" Sela shouted in quick response. They were hit, but only by a few stray shots.

Two of their sister ships were not so lucky. The combined force of hundreds of ships was finally able to overwhelm their weakened shields. They went out in a ball of fire.

The Centauri fired again and kept the Romulans on the run and at optimal range. Their saturation fire was enough to often pin the Romulans to where their focus fire became effective. Hyperspace was playing havoc on Romulan shield generators as they tried to absorb even a fraction of the normal damage. Slowly the warbirds were driven back, toward the mine field.

Admiral Sela gritted her teeth in outrage. "Find me that ship!"

000000000 

"That's it! We're actually doing it!" Admiral Varia of the Centauri clutched his arm rest as the saturation fire took effect. The Romulan ships were still agile and often managed to escape from being pinned down by taking a horrendous amount of fire. Still it was working. "Drive them to the mine field." He ordered. All too soon a warbird wandered too close to one of the anti-matter mines they had planted earlier. The bird like ship tripped the proximity sensors of the nearest mine. The resulting explosion vaporized the enemy.

Across the bridge the officers cheered as another of their once invincible enemy was taken out.

"Keep firing!" the admiral ordered. As long as he could keep the stolen vessel hidden the Romulans would stay and come under fire from the almost two thousand ships gathered here. If the enemy escaped into real space then the damage vessel was theirs to keep. It was a win, win situation all thanks to Refa's noble sacrifice. The admiral chuckled.

000000000

Sela cursed as another of her warbird was driven too close to the mine field. Her own ship was not doing much better. Their shields were at critical and could fail any moment.

"Admiral, we can't stay here much longer." Argelian's distorted voice came over the comm. Sela at that moment was thrown out of her seat as a third mine exploded.

"Just find that ship commander."

"Sir, I found the _Generex_!" Someone on Sela's bridge called out in triumph. Several Centurions let out a sigh of relief at those words but they knew they were not out of the woods just yet. "It's in the enemy formation."

"Commander, go!"

Argelian knobbed, "Prepare to go to warp," with those last orders he cut off communication.

The nacelles on the _Temet_ flared a bright green as every last bit of warp power was used. For a second it seemed to the Centauri as if it stretched onto infinity. Instinctively they fired upon it, but even as the destructive beams left their batteries the Temet appeared among them, too fast for the eye to see or the hands to react.

Every turret in the fleet turned to face the _Temet_, since its intensions were obvious. But they were too slow. The _Temet_ fired a single green globe before it stretched once again and disappeared. The high yield torpedo struck the Generex and vaporized the ship.

With the destruction of the _Generex _, there was no longer any point in continuing this fight in hyperspace. Admiral Sela immediately ordered a full retreat of the remaining warbirds into normal space. The transition was instant, but even so they only barely dogged incoming fire. The Romulan fleet immerged several hundred kilometers from the Marigol jumpgate. The Centauri fleet was right on their tail.

Once again in normal space, the Romulan systems returned to normal operations, but they had taken a beating and repairs were required. They could not stay long, but just long enough to exact some measure of revenge.

Sela gave one last look at the jumpgate. "Lock torpedoes on the gate." This was their mission – but it was more like a final spite to the face of the enemy that has taken such a large toll. Since they couldn't have Marigol, neither would the Centauri.

One last torpedo was fired from the Romulans, to the shock and surprise of the Centauri in pursuit. They watched helpless, too far away to do anything to effect the outcome. The torpedo struck one of the jump gate's power generators and touched off the Quantium 40. The jumpgate was consumed in spectacular fire.

"There's nothing for us here, take us back to base." Sela ordered. Almost solemnly, the Romulans retreated from the field of battle, leaving behind stretched afterimages at their wake and fiery debris that once was a jumpgate. They were no longer invincible in the eye of the Centauri, and that was just as much a loss as the destruction of the warbirds.

000000000

Admiral Varia sighed in defeat. It was a victory for morale, but for all intent and purpose they had only managed to drive back the Romulans. The enemy would continue to advance on other fronts and they would be back. But even that small measure of victory had a high cost. The Marigol jumpgate had been destroyed in the battle, regular commercial traffic to the system was now impossible because most civilian vessels did not possess jump drives of their own. With a single shot, the Romulans had in effect accomplished what they had set out to do. The Republic's production capacity had been dealt a severe blow that would take months or even years to recover from.

"Admiral, something strange is going on." An officer on the bridge got his attention. "I just lost the signal from the hyperspace beacon network."

"Which one?" the admiral inquired.

The officer hesitated to respond, the implications too frightening to contemplate. "All…all of them…"

Varia understood what was going on. The Romulans, they had taken out the jump gates in the adjacent systems.

"How far does it go?"

"I am not sure, but if I'm correct… then the beacon network for over half the republic and beyond has been destabilized."

The admiral half sat and half fell down; his knees gave way to pure fatigue and outright shock. "By the Great Maker…" The true nature of the Romulans diabolical plan was made evident to him. They were now trapped in Marigol with over half of the Imperial navy. They could not return to defend Centauri Prime, and the Emperor could not send a fleet to retake the territory under the Romulans. They were prisoners in their own system, while the Romulans had secured a beachhead.

It was all over. Varia took his sidearm and removed the safety from the hoister. With trembling hands he put it to his temple.

000000000

**Somewhere in Minbari space while in route to meet with the grand fleet…**

"Alyt Shakiri, we have lost the beacon signal from hyperspace."

"What? Take us to normal space." Until the signal could be regained, the Minbari Sharlin would be unable to join the main fleet for the next assualt on the humans. However, humans would soon be the least of the Minbari's worries.


	5. Chapter 4: A Klingon's Honor Part 1

_Apparently, some loon of a B5 fan actually has made map of all the stars systems in B5, and it's canonally (is that a word?) accurate. Well, that' just great. In keeping with a more realistic (relatively) accurate geographic picture (Actually I'm the obessive perfectionist type), the following changes will be made from no on. Instead of something I just made up. _

_Planet Valini is now Planet Quadrant B. (Hay those don't knock it, the Centauri call earth Beta 2) _

_Planet Lurshan is now Planet Morigol. _

_Now we return you to the regularly schedule program… _

Story by Oberon, Beta: Entilza

Star Trek: The Next Expansion

Chapter 4: A Klingon's Honor Part 1

Alyt Nandroom's thin lips curled into a twisted maelstrom of emotion. For two days his ship, the Sharlin class War Cruiser _Shield Breaker_, had been trailing a human convoy escorted by 3 EA Hyperions in hyperspace. The prey had a head start but the Minbari were closing in with every jump. The bloodlust had been hard to contain and the anticipation was like a fine sword begging to be wielded in combat – it called to his heart with a seductive song. But now they were lost.

"You have lost the beacon signal?" Nandroom exclaimed to his navigator. He was less than pleased with the young warrior before him. If it was his incompetence that had caused him his prize, the young Minbari would be scrubbing the decks for an entire year. It would prove to be a valuable lesson for the warrior.

"Alyt, the signal suddenly went out 5 minutes ago. I can't explain it. It isn't a sensory malfunction." The young one panicked, he had heard stories of ships that had been lost in hyperspace. It was gruesome and repulsive to their warrior senses, to think crew members would consume their brethren to survive.

Nandroom believed him; he had another check the sensors as soon as the young warrior reported the problem. There had been a brief flux in the tachyon transmission a few moments before the signal was lost. "Very well, power up the jump engines. We'll wait until the network realigns." Thankfully they had not wondered too far off course before discovering the disruption in the network. He thought of the Humans. Had they noticed the disruption too? He hoped they did, he would not be denied the honor of ending their lowly existence.

The question was: who would dare to destroy jump gates – the life blood of civilization?

The _Temet_ had stumbled onto the _Shield Breaker_ when they escaped from the battle after destroying the _Generex_. From beyond the Minbari's sensor range the Romulans observed these aliens who were currently at war with the humans in this sector.

"So Lieutenant, what do you make of that ship?" Argelian marveled at the complex organic looking design. It was like some sort of aquatic fish swimming in a colorful ocean of the void.

"Our computer identifies it as a Minbari Sharlin class heavy cruiser. Intriguing; the outer hull is made of a crystalline composite that has energy refractive properties. The armor would give it a definite advantage over the primitive weaponry used by many of the local races. However, it is extremely brittle and susceptible to kinetic impacts." The lieutenant then noticed some thing odd. "Commander, the Minbari vessel had come to a full stop. It is not possible for them to have detected us at this distance." At least she thought it was impossible.

"Something could be malfunctioning on their side," a crewman suggested.

"I believe I have discovered the problem. The beacon system is no longer transmitting." The lieutenant displayed a layout of the entire hyperspace network. "The disruption seems to cover an area of twelve light years around the Morigol jump gate, with the effects diminishing the further away we go. This part of the network cannot be traveled by the local races until the beacons are recalibrated."

"Twelve light years…" Argelian muttered. This was a grave situation. "That's much more than we predicted. Would our own beacons be affected as well?"

The lieutenant, for a brief moment, wanted to comment of the idiocy of the question. But she refrained. "Negative, our own beacons are subspace based. The main fleet is in no danger of losing their way in hyperspace." The arrogance of her fellow crew must be rubbing off on her, the lieutenant mused. "We will need to apprise the Admiral of the situation."

_Indeed_, Argelian thought. The locals would get rowdy about this. Still… he was not about to just leave the Minbari.

"Not just yet," Argelian suddenly had a thought. "This is an opportunity. We will capture that ship for study. They are more advanced than the other races. Perhaps they know why the humans are here." There was no argument form the crew.

"They are powering up their vortex generator." The lieutenant reported.

"Excellent, prepare to exit hyperspace. Once we're out, engage our cloaking device."

**)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o(**

Alyt Nadroom had ordered his Sharlin into normal space until the beacons had recalibrated. The heavy Minbari warship found itself in interstellar space far from any stars or planets. It was an unsettling first few minutes for everyone.

"Now we wait," the Alyt proclaimed. It was safer than wandering in hyperspace. He resigned himself to an anxious few hours before the hunt for the cowardly Humans would continue. For awhile he stood on the bridge, vigilant. He faltered some time later and almost fell to the floor. He had thought himself simply tired from the chase but when he noticed others around him fighting to stay conscious he realized it was not simple fatigue. In one desperate attempt he tried to warn the rest of the crew but it was too late. The last thing he saw before the darkness fell over his eyes was the appearance of a large predatory bird.

**)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o(**

"The anesthetic compound has been disbursed throughout their life support system sir. The Minbari crew is unconscious."

Argelian smiled. The Minbari Sharlin would prove to be an excellent source of intelligence.

"Lock a tractor beam, then set a course back to base." Argelian looked forward to seeing what these Minbari were made of.

**)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o(**

**Earth Alliance Space:  
New London Colony: **

Captain Eisenbarth of the cargo freighter _Patemkin_ stood unflinchingly over the radar display. His face contorted in pain. An old wound troubled him when he stood rigidly for hours on end.

"Dave, jump point formation!" the Patemkin's first mate, John Holland, cried out. The Minbari were here, Eisenbarth thought darkly.

"Has the last shuttle docked yet?" Three hundred colonists were on their way up from the planet below, but if his ship stayed any longer they would endanger the lives of the three thousand already packed in the _Patemkin_. David's face fell and the many lines were more evident than ever.

"The last of the civilians are boarding the shuttle now, Dave. They wouldn't clear the atmosphere for at least 10 minutes."

"Damn," David Eisenbarth swore silently. Right now the Earth Force ships were engaging the Minbari, trying to buy the evacuees more time with their lives. On the Patemkin's viewport they could see one of those ugly Bone Head fighters break through the line of Starfuries. It made a beeline for a Hyperion that was trying to eyeball the small fighter before it was too late. But it was, for the crew of the Hyperion. With a single volley from the Nial the gigantic Hyperion, the Nautilus, went out in a smoldering chunks of burning metal as the Nial's weapon punched through a deep tear in its armor left from a previous battle.

David made a decision. "We're not staying any longer. I will not endanger the people on board. Signal Earth Force, we're leaving." Hopefully the remaining combat capable ships would be enough to buy them the precious minutes it would take to reach the Jump Gate.

Holland did not object. It was a terrible thing to leave those other colonist behind but at least he would be safe. And that was the important thing. The Minbari could have everyone else for all he cared. "Take us to the Jump Gate fast as you can, Meggie." He placed a hand on the helmswoman's shoulders and watched her like a hawk as she took the ship out from its hiding place. From behind the moon the _Patemkin_ powered up it's engines. The shadows had obscured them thus far, but once they started moving the Minbari saw them in an instant. A single Nial was sent to deal with them.

From the helm display Holland saw a single Nial coming their way. "One of the Nials is breaking formation!" he panicked.

"Earth Force says they'll cover our back," Mark Polanski, the comm. officer replied.

"Thank God, can we go a LITTLE faster Meggie?" Eisenbarth crossed his fingers. The Nial was fast but it had to go through the gauntlet.

Three minutes later they were almost to the jump gate but the Nial had broken through all but the most stubborn defenders.

"Shut up and let me do my job!" Meggie screamed at the top of her lungs. "40 seconds."

To the horror of everyone on the bridge, the Nial finished off the last Starfury that got in its way. It headed right for them at speeds the Patemkin couldn't hope to match. As the Minbari got close to weapons range the Starfuries behind it fired wildly, hoping to get its attention or score a hit.

Thirty seconds had passed since the Nial broke free, but the _Patemkin_ was still too far from the Jump Gate. The Nial prepared to fire while casually dodging random attacks from its pursuers.

The Minbari pilot grinned. He was a young warrior that revered their leader Dukat like everyone else. He too felt the sorrow and the lost of a dream at Dukat's death. Now was his chance to do his part, finally. For Dukat! He pressed the trigger, but just as his Nial fired it was shot from behind. A lucky hit by one of the Earth Force fighters; it was enough to throw off his aim. He had paid far too much attention to thoughts of revenge and forgot about the Earthers trying to stop him. The Nial went off course and the shot aimed at the _Patemkin_ went wide but still found its mark.

Now adrift, its hull punctured, the _Patemkin_ was helpless. The young Minbari marveled at his work. It would be a slow death for the Earthers, their atmosphere leaking into space, the jump gate just out of their reach. He wondered if the Alyt would deem them worthy to be put out of their misery. The Nial still had partial power to its gravimetric drive, although his fighter was somewhat more sluggish than before. He could still fight. He searched for his next opponent.

Captain Eisenbarth tugged his jacket around himself tightly. It was becoming cold on the bridge and it would get a lot colder still. "What a way to go…" he sighed. Holland was beside him, trying to patch the system back together, anything to keep the life support system working for just little while longer. David wanted to tell him to sit down and shut up; to take it like a man, that he was just working himself up for no reason. He wanted to tell him that his laughable attempts were just wasting everyone's oxygen.

The captain eyed the jump gate just out of their reach. The battle was over, the Earth Force ships now flaming wrecks in space. The Minbari had left them alone, to die in space a slow death. At least they offered the colonist left behind a better deal. Those on the last shuttle died brutally, but swiftly as Minbari Neutron beams cleaved through them.

The first mate finally collapsed and, for no particular reason, he bellowed and laughed uncontrollably on the floor. Not knowing why, Eisenbarth joined in the fun.

Hypoxia, David finally figured out why everyone was laughing. In the final moments of his life he laid still, too tired to move or even to stay awake.

It seems like an eternity later that Dave had another thought. He felt his eyes burn with the intense light in his face. He tried to go back to sleep, it was comfortable there. He could just close his eyes and forget the atrocities and the threat of genocide to his people. But he was bombarded by sensations. Sound, it pounded at his eardrums, too loud to be ignored. For awhile the captain of the Patemkin couldn't figure out what the sound was telling him. Then it dawned on him. It was a question.

"Are you their-" the voice said but he couldn't make sense of what it was asking. "Are you-" they were asking him something. Again they asked. "-captain?" Finally he put it together.

Consciousness returned rapidly. "Yes, I'm the captain."

His eyes focused. A face took form. In a moment it became more distinct and David could see some features. It… he was human, though he looked pale and dressed oddly. His eyes still hurt when he tried to take in more details so for the moment he was content that the man before was human, even though he couldn't tell what he looked like exactly.

They had been rescued, the thought occurred to David. "What happened? Are the colonists safe?" He tried to get up, but the sudden action made him dizzy and he fell back on whatever he was lying on.

"Your crew and the passengers are recuperating. We rescued your people after the Minbari departed."

"Thank god," David let out a sign of relief. "My ship?" he asked. It was his livelihood, though at the moment he was just grateful to be alive.

"We had to leave it. Your ship was damaged beyond repair." The man told him.

Dave relaxed, there was nothing he could do at this point, he thought of his family – how happy they would be to see him alive. That was more important than any ship. "Thank you… my crew and everyone on board would be dead if you didn't find us. We thought Earth Force assets in the system had been all but destroyed."

"We watching the battle but had to wait until the Minbari fleet departed. We thought it would be too late, but you and your crew survived."

The bout of dizziness passed and in a moment David's head cleared. His vision finally focused on his rescuer. He was shocked by what he saw.

"We have a few questions for you to answer." The man, if he could be called a man, spoke fluently to him.

David pulled himself back together. He reasoned that if they had saved him, and in defying the Minbari by doing so, these pointy eared guys must not be all bad. His mind turned. He was no diplomat but even he understood the implications. At last, Earth may have found its first ally – someone not afraid to stand up to the Minbari.

"You're… you're not human." Despite his little voice telling him to be polite and diplomatic, these were the only words that came out of his mouth. He cursed himself silently. _Good going David. _The alien's expression turned at his sudden reaction.

"What we are is unimportant; we only require your cooperation."

Hearing more than seeing the hostility in the alien's voice; Eisenbarth couldn't help but ask. "I thought you saved us…" once the words left his lips he knew his initial assumption may had been a mistake. The alien's expression changed again. The pale alien was much more open this time.

"We saved your, but for a short time you and your people will be our guests. We, as the good hosts that we are, simply want to know a few things concerning with the races we associate with."

"I see…" he said slowly. Perhaps the earlier hostility was just a cultural misunderstanding, the captain of the Patemkin reasoned. Yeah that was it, a cultural misunderstanding. "My name is David Eisenbarth." The captain introduced himself. It was only the polite thing to do under the circumstances. "I'll be happy to answer any questions, but first I wonder will it be possible to send a message back to our people? To let them know that we are safe."

The alien's face was bland and unreadable. "Of course, but we are currently far from your previous coordinates. Real time communication will be impossible. However, if you would like to send a recorded message we can arrange that. We will just need the comm. frequency of your communication net. Your message should arrive in two to three weeks."

"Oh thank you, can I make the recording now?" David was elated. The news of his rescue will bring hope to so many back home.

"You will have time for that later. But first we would like for you to answer a few questions."

"Of course, please. I'll do my best to help with knowledge of our people." Maybe, just maybe these aliens would lift a finger to save humanity. This was the miracle everyone human has been preying for back home. He just hoped these aliens would help, and that he could convince them to help. David felt the weight of the world on his shoulder. "And may I ask to whom am I speaking?"

"I am Centurion Solos."

"Centurion… this is a military vessel?" he was surprised again. Why was a military vessel doing in Alliance Territory – were they spying on the Minbari or us humans?

"Yes, we have to protect ourselves from various enemies. We are simply being cautious. Now, if you please. I have quite a few things I must ask."

But this is the miracle we been waiting for, David reminded him self. "Alright, go ahead." He told the alien.

"First, are the humans here a member of the United Federation of Planets?"

"What kind of question is that?" he wanted to blurt out. But he kept his mouth shut. "I have never heard of this United Federal Planets organization." It was the truth. However the alien's question sounded as if there were humans in this Federal Planets system. But that's impossible.

If this was not the answer the alien wanted David couldn't tell. The alien's face remained passive. "Are you from the planet Earth?" the alien asked again.

"Yes, I am." This was much simpler question. "But I thought you knew that?"

The alien did not answer but instead he asked another question. "When did your people leave Earth to colonize this part of space?"

"The New London colony was founded in 2214. We've been colonizing space since we had star travel in 2156." This was not making sense to the captain of the Patemkin. Why did these aliens know about earth and speak their language so fluently yet know nothing of what should have been public knowledge?

To Solos, it confounded the senses and defied common logic. Everything this human said had been contradictory to everything the Romulans knew of Federation history. If they had left earth in 2214 there was no way wouldn't know about the Federation and furthermore, humanity gained faster than light travel in 2063, not 2156. Either the human was lying, which Solos didn't think he was, or something strange was going on. He glared at the human. It was frustrating him with the answers he received so far.. "If you're lying to me, we'll find out. We'll make being left on that ship feel like a good idea compared to what we'll do to you if we found you have lied to us." He turned to the people beside him. "Guards, take him to the brig."

Two pairs of strong hands grabbed his shoulders and pulled him up. For the first time David noticed where he was. He being was escorted out when he found the first mate among one of the people being treated.

"Do you have any idea who I am!" the first mate screamed to the alien. "My brother is a very high ranking official in Earth Force. I demand to be returned to my government immediately." He continued to struggle but an unseen force held him down. "When my brother hears of-"

David saw what happened to his first mate as he attempted to rush the Centurion. Although he never liked the man much he felt sorry for him. He was stupid and a loud mouth at times, he picked a very bad time to make that known, as the aliens had had enough of him. One of the guards pulled a fancy gun and the next moment the man was just gone. Completely vaporized, there was nothing left of Holland save for the last horrifying screams that still filled Eisenbarth's ears.

His soul chilled. They weren't rescued, they were captured. This was an interrogation.

**)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o(**

**Planet Quadrant B, Beta Quadrant:  
Romulan Forward Base:**

For the longest time Admiral Sela contemplated what her next actions should be. The battle at Morigol had taken more of a toll on their resources than expected. The lost ships and personnel could not be replaced until the main fleet arrived in a month. Moreover, according to reports by commander Argelian, the destruction of the jump gates had created more of a ruckus than originally intended. Now it seemed that the other powers might move against their forces here before they were ready. Thankfully, this part of the galaxy had been cut off from hyperspace travel. Still, if the locals form a unified front they might present a challenge to the main fleet, due to their superior numbers and the wide variety of technology available to them. Therefore, Sela decided to take radical action to prevent the local governments from unifying.

"Computer, begin recording." For what she had in mind, the Admiral would require authorization to expand the war. "To Praetor Tal'aura, Romulan Senate. Jolan Tru, Praetor. We have managed to secure a forward base of operations on the planet Quadrant B. However, while attacking the facilities at Morigol we suffered casualties at the hands of the Centauri. We were ambushed by their waiting fleet. You'll be happy to know that subcommanders Ehhelih and Ruwon were among the ones lost in the battle. Before we retreated I ordered the destruction of the…"

The Admiral was interrupted when the duty officer sent for her.

"Pause recording, yes?"

"Admiral, please report to the CIC. There is a situation developing." The Romulan's voice on the comm. system was a slightly higher than normal, tension and anxiety lightly coating his words.

Sela entered the Command Center moments later. "Report Lieutenant,"

"Three minutes ago I detected the formation of a hyperspace vortex at the edge of our system." His hands moved over the controls.

Sela wanted to tell the Lieutenant that it was impossible. A moment later the replay from their sensor grid was on the display.

"This object just emerged from hyperspace." The Admiral had seen it before. A squid like creature that was actually a living ship. It was the same race that had killed Commander D'varo and the _Makar_. Secretly she suspected the probe they encountered was also from these people.

"It's a bio-ship, much more complex than the ones used by the Breen. I'm detecting cybernetic implants and an artificial power source. It does not match anything in our records." Sela already knew all of this; it was in Argelian's report that had been classified by Tal'aura herself.

"What's it doing?" Sela asked. It was more important to find out where these people came from and what they wanted.

"Nothing, it's just been sitting there for the last few minutes."

"They're spying on us, thinking we don't know they're here." Sela muttered.

"Should we send ships to intercept?" The Lieutenant suggested. Sela paused. With modifications to Romulan shields and weapons, Sela was confident they could capture the alien ship, but these aliens had proved that they could get to them even when hyperspace travel was down. Capturing the alien might incite a war with a powerful foe when their hold in this sector was still tenuous at best.

"No, tell one of our ships to hide near the gravitational well of the planet. They are to follow the alien back to its territory once it leaves. In the meantime our other ships will go to alert status in case they decide to do more than peak in on us."

** )o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o(**

**Romulus, Beta Quadrant:  
Location unknown:**

Chairman Koval of the Tal'Shiar did not smile when he came across a report from Admiral Sela deep in the Beta Quadrant. It wasn't that he thought it was good news, and on the opposite end of the spectrum he wouldn't had frowned had it been bad. The simple fact of the matter is that Koval's face would shatter into a million pieces at the slightest hint of a smile, or at least that was what people close to him always said. To setup the mood even more, Koval always wore black, always. And the black covered his entire heavy set body except for his hair, which was gray.

"…An unexpected result of the gate destruction was that the disruption to the network was much larger than we had anticipated. We now face the possibility of the once isolated governments uniting to face us…" So, not everything was going as smoothly as the Praetor would lead the Empire to believe. Sela continued. "…Possible to redirect blame of the jump gate destruction. Using a modified Centauri hull we can refit it with warp drive engines and use it to attack targets of opportunity..." Cleaver, Koval internally commented. He remembered Admiral Valdore had tried a similar plan. It didn't end well for him.

Koval remembered a history text he had read as a young man. "Forever in history Valdore would be known as the Romulan that created the United Federation of Planets." He quoted that text now - not a hit of amusement on his deeply lined face. Personally he didn't like the writer much, too extravagant.

His attention returned to Sela's message. "Should they perceive the Centauri as no long needing hyperspace for FTL travel they would come to the conclusion that the disruption of the hyperspace network is a Centauri prelude to invasion. In reality, the Centauri in its current form stands no chance of repulsing their attack, but by the time they realize something is amiss our fleet will have arrived. Once we have the numbers, my plan is take out the entire hyperspace network. The bulk of the enemy fleet will be trapped in Centauri space and the local civilizations will collapse within days, leaving the entire sector vulnerable."

It was an audacious plan, even Koval had to admit. He had to give credit to the half-Romulan for coming up with something so underhanded.

"On another note I have included data from the interrogation of a captured Human officer. We have also captured one of the ships fighting the Humans in this sector. Their technology is more advanced than most of the civilization we encountered here thus far, but they would still be vulnerable to disruption in the hyperspace network."

That was certainly interesting. Humans deep in the Beta Quadrant and no one knew about it. Even with his position as Chairman of the Tal'Shiar, Koval wasn't privy to this information. Tal'aura was doing a real good job of hiding her secrets until now. He was certain his associates in the Federation would find this information very interesting indeed. Amused, Koval did not smile.

**  
)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o( ****)o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o(**

**Romulan space, Beta Quadrant:  
_IKS Slivin:_**

The Federation spy in the Romulan government had been known to the Klingons for quite sometime. They didn't know who it was, as the spy was meticulous in his profession, but they knew it was someone high up and well placed. They had found him; or more precisely, his carrier signal almost by accident. The Slivin was just at the right place at the right time several months ago when they intercepted a subspace signal disguised as galactic background noise.

It was an ingenious system and had the Klingons not been at those precise coordinates for their own espionage mission they never would have known. Even now they couldn't track down the source of the transmission, and in fact only one out of twenty communiqués from the spy were intercepted.

Mor'tah, captain of the _Slivin_, had the chance to read over their latest find before he had to relay it to Starfleet Intelligence. Something caught his attention. He grinned, exposing sharp fangs.

Mor'tah and the _Slivin_ had been in the battle of Trelka V some years back. He had nearly gotten Chancellor Martok killed because the _Slivin_ was hit during a critical phase of their escape. Now he would have a new chance for battle and to satiate the blood lust left over from the Dominion War.

His deep bellow resonated through every bulkhead on the ship. It was a horrible sound that filled the hearts of his fellow Klingons with dread.

To be continued in Chapter 5

A Klingons's Honor Part 2


	6. Chapter 6: A Klingon's Honor Part IIA

**Chapter 5 part 1 **

**By Oberon**

**Beta by Entilza **

Klingon Raider:  
**1500s C.E. exact date unknown.**

_"I write this now in the hopes that it will one day find its way back to the Empire. For the honor of my house and that of those under my commander, I will tell the tale so that you will know of our honor and our glory. I am Martok, son of Kiltarc of the House of Martok. Know that I am no coward or fool or dishonored failure. By order of the Emperor Ka'ar I was given a fleet of 260 ships to raid the No'on homeworld. The No'onians were rich and arrogant, and we found their defenses unprepared and slow to act. We attacked mercilessly. Many honorable deeds were performed that day. We slaughtered their warriors,killed their women and children, took everything our cargo bays could hold, and burned the rest. It was truly glorious._

On our return journey we spotted a No'onian ambush. With our hulls full of bounty and our weapons depleted, I gave the order to alter course. We headed into uncharted territory and soon found ourselves caught in a spatial phenomenon. Our ships were sent hurling into the void at unimaginable speeds. The rough currents in the anomaly damaged our systems. We could not break free, and for nine helpless days I watched as the ships under my command were torn apart one after another. Then, as suddenly as we had entered, we were spat out like targ spit. We found ourselves tens of thousands of light years from the Empire with barely functional ships.

I do not know how long we will last, but know that we are not cowards that ran from the battlefield. Our mission was a success; there in no honor in throwing lives at an enemy needlessly. My only regret is that we did not die in honorable combat or by the hands of an enemy, but at the whim of some anomaly.

For the honorable among us, we will see you in the halls of Sto-vo-cor."

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

**Klingon Settlement:**

The howling scream of a Klingon was one of joyous pain. Komex stepped forward, shaking and almost falling but standing his ground.

"The battle is mine!" he screamed. "I crave only the blood of the enemy." He stepped forward once more.

His fellow Klingons, two on each side, thrust their pain sticks at the young warrior's rib cage. Again Komex screamed. They pulled away, leaving Komex panting and almost on his knees. In the haze of the pain he saw his parents and friends waiting for him. Komex was stubborn; he stood up and held his ground.

He took another cautious step. Another pair of Klingons now stood on either side.

"The Blood of the enemy flows through my hands." With these words the two Klingons took their cue and thrust forward with their pain sticks. After the screams there was silence. Komex collapsed on the ground. The Rite completed, the honor satisfied, the others took their leave while family and friends helped the exhausted Komex to his feet.

By now, Martok was an elderly Klingon with a full head of iron gray hair. He was proud of his son's achievements this day as he wrapped his arms around the younger in a hug. "Son, you make the House of Martok proud."

"Net yet father, but I will." It was a promise, Komex stood - proud and assured. In his heart he longed for battle.

The elder Martok waved off the boy's mother. They had a private matter to discuss.

"Son, come. Let me show you something."

Martok led his son to the center of the settlement where the oldest buildings stood. Komex had been here may times before in his youth, this was where they had build their education center and told glorious stories of their fathers. "What are we doing here father?" Komex asked.

"Patience, boy. Patience." Martok entered a nondescript building. They found Jodmos, son of Lieutenant Kor'j, one of the first warriors born in the settlement.

Jodmos saluted Martok as he came in. "Governor, I was not aware there would be an inspection at this time."

"At ease warrior, just taking Komex to see what we have been doing the last few months."

"Very well, make sure to put on protective gear. I heard they're still cleaning up from the accident last night." Jodmos let them pass.

Martok took his son down to the sublevels. "Accidents father?" the boy asked. "I was not aware we had an accident."

"Tell no one of what you see this night." Martok warned. "What you will see… well, you'll understand once you see it," they continue to walk down the stairway until they reached a room marked with the number five. Martok led his son to the far wall. "This way," he said before disappearing into the wall.

"A hologram," it occurred to Komex.

"Yes, now hurry up. We do not have all night." His father urged from beyond the fake wall. "That woman, you don't want her to be angry if we're late for dinner."

"Mother is not unreasonable." Komex protested. He hesitated and followed his father into the wall. They walked for what seemed like miles through underground tunnels dug in solid rock, their way illuminated by dim orange lights that lined the walls. At last they emerged into a large cavern. Komex looked up. The ceiling was a meshwork of girdles and camouflage nets. "We're in the mountains to the south." He realized.

They were in a platform overlooking a deep pit in the hollowed up mountain. "Yes, but that is not important. Look there," Martok pointed to the pit. Below them was the bird like hull of a Klingon vessel, perfectly intact and still predatory even after all this time. She was worn and tired but still held herself proudly.

"It will be awhile before she'll fly again but soon… soon…" Martok drifted off, his thoughts went back to the past. The sight of the old ship brought back painful memories. Many under his command had not survived the journey here.

Komex was at a lost for words. He had been told all the ships had been dismantled and used for raw material or parts in the construction of the settlement.

"Some day this ship will take us back to the glory of the Empire," Martok looked deep into the dark eyes of his son. He could see the fire in his soul burn more fiercely. "And she'll need a crew."

"I will not disappoint you father," Komex pledged.

"Good, now let's go home before that woman decides my head will be better served as a foot stool."

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

**Jewel of Minbar, Worker Cast Prospector:**

The Great War had left its mark on the Minbari people. The lesser races had fallen to the terror of the Shadows, but the Minbari had triumphed over the darkness and would soon be uplifted, for the Vorlons had promised them thus. The Minbari now stood united and proud.

But Felik Mazik sculled the thought of such nonsense. The Minbari did not deserve enlightenment for turning their backs to Valen, the greatest of them all. He was there when it happened. He was a young man then, not yet wise enough to know good and evil. He and others liked him had feared the pollution of the Minbari line. He had believed this with all his heart then, he believed the words of his leaders. When the call came to drive away Valen's children, he had answered. He was proud then, but no longer could he look in the mirror and not wince and turn away from the shame which he wore constantly. Mazik had a sullen face devoid of pride and replaced with guilt.

Like anyone who realized they had made a mistake, Mazik worked to make up for it. He devoted what remains of his life to heeding the call of Valen. That meant preparing for the day Valen had prophesized. Many more warships must be built, but to do that the Minbari people needed a rare element found only in few places of the known space – an element named Quantum 40.

One of his Var'nemm walked up to him. "Two weeks in hyperspace and we find this retched planet."

"Patience, Tulann." Mazik chilled. "We are of the worker cast, we do not seek honor like the warriors or power like the religious cast. We serve, no matter how long it takes."

Tulann bowed to his much older Felik. "Of course, I will take your wisdom to heart."

"Have we detected signs of the element on the surface?" The Felik inquired.

"We're coming up to the other side of the planet now." After a moment the Var'nemm shock his head in failure. "It would seem this planet does not have what we want."

"Very well, launch a beacon then make preparations to go under way."

"Wait." Tulann had seen something on their sensors. "I am detecting a fifth planet. It appears to be habitable."

It was a valuable find. Habitable planets are always sought after as it could mean another colony or military base.

A few hours later, the Jewel arrived in orbit around the fifth planet.

"It appears we arrived a few years too late," Mazik commented. Sensors had detected a settlement on the central continent.

"They are in our space. We have every right to claim this planet as a protectorate and do with it as we please." Tulann countered.

"Certainly, Tulann, you're not suggesting we return to the old ways and turn our backs to the teachings of Valen?" Mazik looked into the young Minbari. He showed great promise, for a warrior. He even got their arrogance which spewed forth with every word he spoke.

"My apologies, Felik, I let my passions get ahead of me."

Mazik turned away. "Conduct a full scan of the planet."

"As you wish." A moment later Tulann came running back to the Felik. "In Valen's name, look at the size of that deposit." Mazik was stunned by what he saw - a huge find of Quantum 40.

"Enough to build a fleet of ships." Tulann stared at the readings in awe.

"Perhaps, look at where it is located. The site is less than a day's walk from that settlement."

Tulann was taken back by his Felik's words. "You're not suggesting we abandon it just because some primitives might object. They don't even have jump technology!"

"Of course not, but perhaps we can negotiate with the natives and establish a mutually beneficial arrangement."

"If that is your wish, we should first learn their language."

Mazik agreed. "Very well, we will begin by monitoring their communications."

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

Komex stood vigilant watch over the Klingon colony. It was a menial task often involving his blaster and some wild animal that wondered too close. Komex's lips curled angrily, he scowled. "This is not a fitting assignment for a warrior," he murmured to the empty darkness. But tonight was too quiet, his heart yarned for blood – even if it was only target practice on some unfortunate creature. Even the critters refused to amuse him this night.

He stood in his post uneventfully for another fifteen minutes, bored out of his skull. He took to walking around the small guard tower to keep his mind sane. Around sunrise the radio, which had been silent all night, crackled with static. Then Komex heard the voice on the other end, Jodmos the guard of the eastern tower, was screaming for him.

"Komex, get up you lazy p'tahk." Jodmos's revolting voice was pissing Komex off. "There is something coming down from orbit."

Komex ran to his sensor display. "I see it." The object was coming quickly; already it was through the outer atmosphere. "It's a shuttle," Komex exclaimed.

"I do not recognize the design."

"I am attempting to communicate," Komex signaled with his subspace radio. "They are not answering."

"The shuttle is only minutes away from the settlement. I am locking on weapons." 

Komex saw the shot. It missed.

"Ghuy'cha'!"

"Your eyes must be rotten from the bags of Jinlar weed your mother smoked while giving birth." Komex laughed. "My turn, I'm locking on." Komex focused all his attention on the targeting display until the loud roar of his blood became silent. Then he fired. Flame erupted from the underside of the shuttle. "Success!"

In this distance the shuttle took an uncontrolled dive toward the ground. Its landing rockets had been shot out. Now it was just a free falling piece of debris.

"You got lucky," Jodmos growled over the radio.

"You ko'tal! You dare to question my skill?" Komex was about to arrange a knife fight to settle this matter when the two were interrupted.

Governor Martok's voice came over the static. "What is going on here?" He demanded. Both guards instantly snapped to attention at the sound of Martok's angry voice.

"Sir, we just shot down an unidentified hostile heading to the colony from orbit." Jodmos replied before the other had a chance to say anything.

"What the tu'HomIraH is trying to say is that: I shot down the hostile." Komex recounted the events. "Jodmos took the first shot but missed. He alerted the enemy and the bIHnuch tried to run. But I locked on; he was not able to escape my sight."

As Jodmos was going over the events, Martok was having trouble controlling his anger. When he finished Martok lashed out. "You fool!"

"Sir?" both guards asked.

"Check the orbital sensors," Martok commanded.

They saw nothing.

They were confused. "Sir, there is nothing their."

"Of course not fool, the mother ship left orbit right after you destroyed their shuttle. They are long gone." Martok growled.

"Good, let the cowards run." Komex boasted his latest accomplishment. He was pleased with himself.

Martok shook his head in disappointment. "And when they come back with warships what will we do then?"

"Then we will strike fear of Klingons into their hearts as well."

"Enough, we'll search for any survivors and see what we can learn from their shuttle. Martok, out." The radio was silent. Komex looked defiantly at his post. His blood still roared with lust for more.

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

**Grey Council flagship Valen'tha:**

A single Minbari stood in the light surrounded by darkness. He was Nareen of the Religious Cast, he who stood between the light and the darkness. He stood in his position proudly, but in his advanced years he found it more and more of a challenge. The harsh light glared in his eyes and he found it too bright, almost painful.

"We gather here because of a situation which is developing as even as we, of the Grey, argue over petty issues. Five days ago one of our explorer vessels found a pre-space civilization within our own territory. We attempted to make contact, but the natives killed our ambassador in his shuttle." The elderly Minbari surveyed the room, the others had not responded thus far. "I call forth Var'nemm Tulaan, who bore witness to the incident."

"Wait," interrupted another of the grey. With a loud clang the spot light lit over the form of Laneth, of the Warrior cast. "I know of the incident you speak of. I do not believe the testimony of the worker is warranted or required."

Nareen, leader of the council, studied the warrior. Laneth was reputed to be the greatest pilot of the previous generation, now the prestige of his position had made him fat. "I thought I would never see the day when the warriors would be secure enough to overlook such an insignificant threat." Nareen taunted the warrior. He saw the barely suppressed anger on the face of Laneth.

"The warrior cast will not stand for such insult from such primitives. It is obvious what our course of action should be." Laneth, of the warrior cast, explained.

"And what should we do, Laneth? Would we destroy them?" Nareen, the leader, continued to prod.

"Of course, they deserve nothing less for their insolence." Laneth, of the warriors, said proudly.

The others murmured at the warrior's callous suggestion. It was repulsive to many that such a crime to the universe was suggested, and yet, many among the council found themselves agreeing with the rash Laneth. And for this reason many among the council found themselves torn.

The warrior cast was always quick to anger; Nareen found them predictable in their hostility. This was exactly the response the wise Nareen had wanted.

"Let us hear what the Var'nemm has to say before we decide on a course." Selise, of the religious cast, suggested.

Nareen, leader of the council, regarded Selise. She was playing the great moderator as always. An apt role for one with such charisma, Nareen thought. "Bring forth Tulaan." He ordered.

"I am Tulaan of the worker cast. Let me recount the events that led to my mentor's cold blooded murder at the hands of these animals…"

Tulaan spoke and the council listened.

"These animals gunned down Felik Mazik while he was trying to make first contact." The worker spoke animatedly, every word and gesture conveying his hatred and disgust toward the inhabitants of that world. "We had no weapons and none of us were trained in the ways of the warrior. Fearing for our lives I ordered the ship to leave orbit immediately and to report back to this council."

Nareen looked to the young Minbari. "You may leave us now, Talaan."

Before Talaan took his leave he had one last emotional plea. "These savages are animals. The worker cast demand that the blood of one of their own be revenged!" His outburst was met with approval by the Warriors and various murmurs in the council.

"Know your place young one. Leave us." Nareen was much more forceful this time around.

The young Minbari bowed then disappeared.

"I sense a great darkness in these creatures." Spoke Valinnar. Nareen gasped - such presumptuousness coming from one of his own cast members.

"We know nothing of these people. We should not be so quick to judge." Nareen tried to take the debate down another path and hopefully to a less bloody conclusion.

"No," Benaar of the Warriors spoke up. "I too can feel the taint of the shadows in them."

Shakhan, leader of the worker cast, decided it was time to step up. "The worker cast knows not whether these creatures had been touched by the darkness. We only know that our blood demands these Klingon creatures be made to suffer."

"Then we are in agreement, as odd as it seems." Lenath, of the warrior cast, said. "I suggest we put this to a vote. Who here is in favor of punishing these Klingons?"

Things were moving faster than Nareen could control. Atop the leader of the Council's objects, the others moved one by one into action. They agreed with Laneth's suggestion and a vote was taken from the 9 members of the council.

Only Nareen and his protégé, Seline, voted against.

"It is decided then," Shakhan, of the workers, proclaimed. "Now, all that need to be decided is the form of punishment."

Laneth, of the warrior cast, again suggested a course of action. Though it greatly shocked many present. "These Klingons should be exterminated from the face of the universe!"

"Hear me," Banaar the leader of the warriors spoke out. "Think for a moment what would happen when we do not discipline them harshly. They would continue in their ways and in a thousand years what would become of them? At the time Valen had prophesized the enemy will find an all too willing pawn right here in the heart of our territory. We must remove them now before they become too great a threat."

Seline was outraged by warriors' attitude. "The religious cast will NOT support this atrocity." She stood with defiance and stared Banaar in the eye.

"May I make a suggestion?"

Nareen, the leader of the Council, was wondering when Salnir of the worker cast would make his move. Salnir was the youngest of the council and the most ambitious.

"The Klingons need to be punished. But they do not deserve death for one mistake." Salnir looked to Nareen. "Violent as they may be, they are still young and could be educated to the ways of the light."

Nareen knew he had lost the battle but at least some of the Klingons would survive. "What is it that you suggest?" Nareen asked.

"Just as we gained enlightenment in the service of the Vorlons, so too would these Klingons be made to labor for the Minbari – and in doing so, be uplifted beyond their primitive nature."

"An intriguing idea," Banaar told the worker. "Very well, we will spare their lives, but first they must be made to pay for their insult against us."

"We would demand nothing less," Salnir agreed. "But may I make one more suggestion?"

"Yes, what is it?" Banaar became irritated by the small Minbari. He was much too timid for the warrior's liking.

"While the warriors deal out the punishment, the workers should be ones supervising their reeducation. It is through physical labor that the young truly learn, and who better to mentor these Klingons than we of the worker cast?"

Banaar boasted once more. "We warriors have no interest in babysitting these animals. You may do with them as you wish after we make them see the error of their ways."

His words only made Salnir of the worker cast smile a hidden smile.

Nareen took the chance to have the last word. "Banaar, I trust you will be a merciful and fair disciplinarian?"

"Aren't we all?"

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

**Klingon Colony:**

The bombs had been falling since the early morning. They struck without warning and in the first salvo all the ground based artillery the Klingons had setup were obliterated, the screams of the warriors manning those positions were never heard.

Martok and Komex watched in horror as beams from orbit laid waste to the village. Klingons tried to seek shelter but were vaporized as they ran. The buildings collapsed and fire spread through the dry forest. They had been hunting large game and escaped the fire.

Just as suddenly as it started the attacks stopped. The son, Komex, had taken the opportunity to climb a nearby tree. The elder Klingon tossed his son the scope. But he did not need to see to figure out what is going on. The burning trails of the aliens' landing crafts flying through the atmosphere made it apparent.

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

It did not take long to level the settlement. In the few hours since the Minbari had arrived they had turned to ash what the Klingons had spent decades building. The few survivors were rounded up, mostly women, children and a few young warriors. Some put a fight when the pale skinned aliens showed themselves, but the Klingons were outnumbered. The resisters were quickly killed. The Minbari placed the survivors in the center of what was once their village, now burning buildings surrounded them.

"We are the Minbari," one of the pale creatures spoke in perfect Klingon. "For your crimes against our people, the Grey Council had judged you guilty. You will be punished." The Minbari spoke. He made a motion with his hand and two of the Minbari guards brought up a badly injured Klingon. He was one of the younger warriors, like many it was his first battle. The guards made the half-dead Klingon warrior kneed before the Minbari in charge.

"This one," he pointed to the kneeing Klingon – beaten to within an inch of his life and eyes swollen shut. "He killed two of his betters in a most dishonorable fashion." The Minbari leader pulled a pistol from his holster and shot the young warrior in the head. The warrior slumped on the dirt, dead. "Make no mistake," he told the few Klingons who were still conscious. "Service means life. Resistance will not be tolerated. In time you will thank us for bringing the light of enlightenment to your barbaric souls."

Hearing these words the remaining Klingons roared. "We are Klingons, we serve no master!"

It was a suicide charge that ended in slaughter.

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

Komex looked down the hill with his scope. "A party of the pale skins is coming this way."

Martok's face twisted into a visage of a raging storm. "Come son. We must leave. Our ship is their only hope." He held down his hate and let it brood, saving it for the moment when he would strike down these cowards.

"Father, I-" Komax began.

"Your actions have brought this upon us, but there is no time to discuss it now. We must leave and bring word of this to the Emperor," Martok replied. He and Komex turned their backs even as their village continued to burn.

**0BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE00BREAK HERE0**

Five hours after leaving the village Martok and Komex were near the base of the Kil'deja Mountains. Suddenly they heard the sonic boom of an incoming fighter. They looked up to see two blue fighters swooping down, firing their green beam weapons. The two Klingons dove into cover as the Minbari passed over, one of the fighters releasing a clutch of bombs that sent fire gushing through the valley.

After the fighters moved on, Komex pushed rocks off him. He was badly bruised, and several of his ribs felt broken. "Father!" He called out, blood spilling from his mouth. Several meters away the rubble shifted. Komex rushed over and dug his father out. One of his legs had been pierced by a falling shard of rock, and blood spilled out.

"I am fine. Hurry, we must get to the ship before they return." Martok tried to get to his feet, but his injured leg collapsed under him.

"I will help," Komex said, holding one arm around his father's shoulders and together the two Klingons entered a large cave. They walked for nearly an hour, stopping several time for Komex to dress Marok's wound with a strip of cloth he tore from his tunic. Finally they reached a large chamber opened to the sky. The restored Bird of Pray awaited them.

"Come, we must make our escape," Martok said, and the two Klingons stumbled up the ramp of the Bird of Prey.

Continue in Chapter 5 part 2

Price of admission: 1 review.


End file.
